Mama and the 16 Dads
by rainediamond
Summary: It all starts with Cecil's dream. Then Shining sends them all to the future to meet their kids and learn the answer to who Haruka ends up with. Now with the "No Love" rule gone, will the guys make their moves or learn to share? Haruka x All. Reverse-harem with cute children and family fluff! Please R&R! (Premise partially inspired by "Dear Cute Children")
1. Chapter 1

**So, I felt like there is a lack of cute, family-centric fics for Utapri. I needed more cute children, so I decided to start this new story. I've only found these stories with kids or babies: "The Telling of Important News" by ATCFan, "Dear Cute Children" by Elhienn Hovercast, "Into the Future" by SilverMoonLace, and my previous Utapri story, "Utapri: The Next Generation".**

 **Just a disclaimer for this whole story: I don't own Uta no Prince-Sama.**

 **This is a Haruka x Everyone (STARISH, Quartet Night, HEAVENS, and the teachers) fic. If you don't like reverse harem, don't read it.**

 **Please read, review, fave, and follow to support this story! (No flames, please.)**

It all started with Cecil and Camus arguing in the common room.

"You imbecile, only a fool dares speak of such things so blatantly!" Camus roared as he strode ahead of the yawning prince.

"Camus, you're so mean! I was just telling you about my dream last night." Cecil rubbed his head sleepily.

"I have no need to interest myself in your trivial sleep stories," the count huffed.

"What did you dream about, Cecil?" Otoya asked as he peered at the prince from his place on the couch.

Cecil blushed. "Well, erhm... I was dreaming about having kids with Haruka. Regal and strong children with pink hair or golden eyes. They were calling me Baba. And Haruka was there kissing..." he trailed off and buried his face in the newspaper he stole from Tokiya.

Ren whistled. "Looks like the prince has a devilish side. I'm sure you're kids would be cute, but not nearly as cute as mine with the lady."

Masato smacked Ren over the head. "You're being an idiot, Jinguji."

"But you've thought about it too, don't lie," Ren wheedled.

Masato froze as his blush let off enough steam to heat up the room. "I-I did no such thing! That would be indecent!"

"Surely my kids would be the cutest. Can you imagine a little Haru-chan and a little me in Piyo-chan costumes! Kawaii!"

"Oy, Natsuki! Don't go gettin' ahead of yourself. Nanami has not shown any indication that she is falling for you."

"Nor for you, Ochibi-chan," Ren pointed out.

Syo fumed, "REN! Don't call me that!"

Natsuki began patting Syo's head. "There, there. I'm sure your kids with Haru-chan would be cute too!"

"That's not what I was saying!" Syo growled even as his face was painted in a vicious blush.

Otoya sighed happily. "My kids with Nanami would be the sweetest ever, just like their mom. And they'd love to play with me and we'd build forts. I can just imagine Nanami smiling, holding the baby and..." Otoya trailed off, too embarrassed to finish when he spotted everyone staring at him. "What about you, Tokiya?"

"Don't involve me in this," Tokiya deadpanned, but they did not miss the slight dusting of pink on his cheeks.

"You are all fools, only the most beautiful can create the most beautiful children. Therefore my children with her would be the most impressive."

"Ehh?! Myu-chan-senpai loves Haru-chan too?" Natsuki asked in surprise.

"Yahoo! What's going on here, kouhais?" Reiji asked as he bounced into the room.

"Something stupid, no doubt," Ranmaru growled.

"We were just talking about what it would be like to have kids with Haruka," Cecil explained.

"Definitely stupid," Ranmaru commented as he left room in search of food.

Reiji smiled, "Sounds fun! My turn!" He put his fist to his chin as he thought for a minute. "Let's see. We'd have two or three kids. Each would be a mix of kouhai-chan and I. Maybe brown hair and golden eyes or pink hair and my eyes. Who knows? And I would cook for them and we'd spend lots of time cuddling and having fun."

The others stared at him in horror. "SHAMELESS!" they chorused.

"So mean," Reiji pouted.

Just then, a knock came at the door.

Haruka poked her head into the practice room. "Ah, minna-san, I've just finished the STARISH and Quartet Night duet song if you would like to see it."

Ai appeared behind her suddenly. "Oh, you finished already?"

Haruka let out a squeak as she jumped and stumbled in surprise. The guys all lunged forward, trying to steady her, but Ai just caught her in a princess carry. Tokiya and the others in the practice room could feel the blush on their faces as Haruka's position caused her skirt to hitch high enough for them to spot the top of her thigh-high stockings. Ren was practically salivating.

Ai looked down at the frazzled composer. "How odd, my heart is pounding much faster than usual."

Reiji chuckled as Ai looked straight into the golden eyes of the clumsy girl. She thrashed a little in his arms from embarrassment. "Ah, Mikaze-senpai, I'm okay now, thank you."

Masato almost got a nosebleed when her thrashing revealed the edge of a white lace bra

STARISH looked on in surprise as Ai continued holding Haruka in his embrace. "Be more careful, Haruka," he instructed before he finally let go of the crimson-faced composer.

"H-hai!" Haruka squeaked as she adjusted her dress and made her way to the piano. Once she had reached the group of men, she showed them the sheet music.

Most of STARISH directed their attention away from her and toward the music as she finished adjusting the bust of her dress. However, Ren had other plans.

"You know, Little Lamb, I could just eat you up," Ren warned with a slight growl as he cupped her chin in his hand.

Reiji joined in. "It looks like you could use some help getting that dress on, but I'd much rather take it off."

Haruka turned so red, Otoya's hair was jealous. "Ahh, thank you, but I'm quite alright." She backed away from the two predators and bumped into Camus.

The count glared at the other two. "Such a delicate lady commands more tact."

The others cleared their throats, waiting for someone to break the silence. They all let out a relieved sigh as Natsuki called out an exclamation.

"Sugoi, Haru-chan!" Natsuki cheered as he scanned the melody. With the tension broken, the others began to focus on the music again.

Cecil hugged Haruka as he announced, "I don't know how you do it, but every song is more amazing than the last! You are simply wonderful, My Princess."

"You've really outdone yourself, Lady."

"Good job, Kouhai-chan," Reiji added with an impressed look.

Camus smirked, "This is a song worthy of my talents."

Haruka beamed at the praise. "Thank you, minna-san!" She glanced at the clock, "Oh, please excuse me, I'm late to meet with Tomo-chan." With that, their princess excused herself, leaving them all breathless.

"She's pretty cute," Ranmaru admitted begrudgingly as he bit off a piece of his sandwich.

Everyone was still staring after the gentle swishing of her cream dress when Ringo appeared. He stared at his former students with a wicked smirk. "Ohayo!" he shouted. The eleven men jumped. Ringo giggled. "You guys are adorable- but not as adorable as my kids with Haru-chan would be!"

"Ehh!" STARISH screeched.

"How interesting," Reiji noted with a devilish grin in Ringo's direction.

"Not you too, Rin-chan," Otoya whined.

Ringo ran out of the room laughing like a maniac.

A few hours later, the object of many affections returned back to the Master Course dorms to find her boys sulking. "Eh? Minna-san? What's wrong."

"Nothing," Syo reassured.

Tokiya pinched his brow. "Please don't worry yourself, Nanami-san. It was just a silly dispute between all of us."

Haruka frowned. "Well, if you're sure."

Just as Haruka was about to head back to her room, Shining popped out of the wall right next to her.

"BIG, BIG NEWS," he announced with his booming baritone. Haruka jumped back so she was standing beside Tokiya.

The members of STARISH and Quartet Night looked up expectantly at the president.

"I have prepared one of the agency's guest houses for a special photoshoot with both of your groups, and a surprise guest! Miss Nanami will be joining you to work on some new songs. Your bags have been packed, so prepare to hop on the plane in," he paused for dramatic effect and to check his watch, "fifteen minutes!"

Once his announcement was finished, Shining danced his way over to the window and dive bombed out. Otoya and Masato ran to the window to see him being pulled away on a wire by a helicopter. His raucous laughter continued to echo for a little longer before they turned away from the window.

Camus and Ranmaru grumbled a bit, but the others just sighed or sweat-dropped before moving out to gather carry-ons.

Thirty minutes later, the boys were fighting over who would sit next to Haruka on the plane before Ringo plopped himself down in the vacant seat beside the oblivious composer.

Ringo pulled the girl to his chest and announced, "My precious Haru-chan and I will be taking these seats."

Haruka looked puzzled, but she did not complain. Instead, she started showing Ringo some of the melodies she was working on. The boys pouted, but they eventually took their seats throughout the plane.

Hyuuga's voice came through the speakers, "Buckle up, this is going to be a short, but possibly bumpy flight." With his announcement complete, Hyuuga prepped the small plane for take-off.

Just over an hour later, the plane finally touched down beside a white strip of beach. When they landed, Haruka was relieved to have her stomach stop doing somersaults. She rose unsteadily as everyone began exiting the plane. Just as she was about to start going down the stairs to join the others, her heel caught on the doorframe and she started falling for the second time that day. Just as she would have tumbled down the stairs, a firm arm wrapped around her waist.

Hyuuga tsked, "You're just as clumsy as ever."

Syo groaned. "NOT HYUUGA-SENSEI TOO!"

The others silently glared at Hyuuga for touching their precious Haruka, but they were distracted when another private jet touched down nearby. They all gawked in surprise as HEAVENS made their way down the steps of the black plane.

Eiichi stared at the assembled men in surprise, but a horrifying leer overtook his face when he spotted Haruka.

He sauntered over to the pinkette who had just made her way down the stairs. "Why hello there, Tenshi. You look as lovely as ever," he complimented as he grabbed a stand of her rosy hair and kissed it.

Tokiya and Ren immediately formed a protective barrier in front of the composer as the other five members of STARISH pulled Eiichi away.

Nagi made his way over to the group. "Hello everybody! Fancy seeing you here. Have you decided to go to the museum where you belong yet?"

Cecil growled at the little boy while Kira just stood off to the side, looking at the ocean.

"What are you guys doing here?" Syo asked in annoyance.

"We were called here by Shining Saotome," Eiichi offered, tilting his head so his glasses caught the light of the the setting sun.

"Huh, Shiny-san did?" Ringo asked. "He didn't tell us about them, right Ryuuya?"

"He did not," the action star confirmed as he crossed his arms and scowled.

Somewhere in the bushes nearby, Shining sat waiting for his cue. He grinned as they moved closer to the portal. His ruby eyes dropped to his wristwatch.

10...9...8...

Haruka moved toward the center of where the portal would soon be.

Cecil moved closer to her and warned, "Something in the air doesn't feel right..."

The others encircled the pair and stared as the clouds darkened and the air became charged with static.

3...2...1...

Shining jumped out of the hedges just as the walls of the portal rose around the group of idols.

Tokiya, Cecil, Syo, Ryuuya, and Ren began pounding on the walls as the portal started coming alive and blue light filled the dusk air.

"What's going on?" Syo shouted.

Ryuuya yelled, "Shining! What the hell are you doing!"

"Have a safe trip! Pay attention to the future, it holds the key to the present!" Shining's booming laughter set them on edge. "As of this moment, the 'No Love' rule is gone! HAHA HAHA. Good luck!"

With that final piece of advice, Shining pressed the command sequence on his watch and whispered, "You're going to need it."

The portal began revolving faster and faster as the blue light washed away all senses before everything finally faded to black.

...xxXXxx...

Haruka woke up on something soft, but firm. She groaned as she struggled to sit up, but she squeaked in surprise when she found herself face-to-face with Otoya. He groaned, waking up slowly until he realized she was sitting on top of him.

His face heated up until his cheeks were as red as his hair. "Na-na-na-Nanami!"

"Gomen, Ittoki-kun," said from her place straddling his lap. She immediately jumped to her feet, only to stumble on something and fall on Tokiya who was just sitting up.

"Ow," the bluenette complained until he saw his sweet little composer sprawled between his legs, one arm on either side of his abdomen as her honey eyes stared at him. He turned away slightly to hide his cherry cheeks.

"I'm so sorry, Ichinose-san!" Haruka apologized, trying to make their position less awkward. As she shifted, he saw straight into her cleavage, so he quickly covered his nose as it started bleeding.

"You're fine, Nanami-san," he tried to assure her while looking away. Otoya managed to get to his feet around the waking idols, so he bent down and offered the girl a hand. Once she was up, Tokiya followed and the two blushing boys stood awkwardly as they remembered the intimate positioning of their princess.

Soon enough, the others managed to get up without too many stepped on hands and feet, but when they looked around, they nearly fell again.

All around them were children. The youngest was maybe two and the oldest looked to be around seventeen. Little faces peered at the musicians, and, the guys noted, many had the same startling golden eyes as Haruka.

Finally, a little blue-haired boy around the age of six walked up to Haruka.

She looked down curiously as the golden-eyed boy pulled on her skirt. "Mama, what are you doing?" he asked.

 **A/N: So, first chapter done. Thank you for reading! Let me know what you think in a review. The next chapter will introduce the kids and give more exposition before the fluff can begin. That's all for now! ~Raine**


	2. Introductions

**A/N: Hi guys, welcome to chapter two of Mama and the Sixteen Dads. Thank you to everyone who read, faved, followed, and/or reviewed the previous chapter! Please be sure to read the A/N at the end of the chapter because I need help with this story.** **Disclaimer: still not my series...**

Haruka looked down curiously as the golden-eyed boy pulled on her skirt. "Mama, what are you doing?" he asked.

"Mama?" The guys parroted out of sync. They gaped as they waited to see what Haruka would do.

Haruka knelt down beside the child. "I can't be your Mama, I don't have any kids yet," she explained gently.

The little boy stiffened and his face scrunched up. "No! You're Mama," he insisted.

Then he approached Tokiya. "Look, here's Dad!" Tokiya blushed as the other guys either glared or gawked.

The little boy then moved to Otoya. "Daddy!"

"Huh?" the two boys chorused.

Then to Ren he declared, "Babbo!" The members of all three bands as well as Ringo and Ryuuya quickly became confused when Ren was addressed in Italian. Haruka simply followed along with the child, trying to process why he was calling her Mama and calling the boys his fathers.

He skipped over to Natsuki, "This is Père," and on to Syo who was dubbed Papa. To Cecil, Masato, Ringo, and Ryuuya he offered, "Baba, Father, Da, and Pa," respectively. The other children began coming closer as the little boy tried to make his case.

Haruka stopped the boy, "Hold on, we don't know your name. Can you please introduce yourself and tell me your mother's name so I can show you that I'm not her."

The little boy huffed, his cheeks swelling with air before he let out a sigh. "You are my mom. My name is Ichinose Hayato, and you are my mom, Nanami Haruka!"

Haruka and Tokiya gasped as they stared Hayato. Tokiya frowned, remembering Shining's words to them, before kneeling down in front of the child. He had to admit that the little boy definitely resembled himself and Haruka. "Hayato, please tell me, what year is it?"

The little boy looked at his father in surprise, but realization quickly dawned. "Wait a minute. Could it be? You're from the past...? Oh, that's what you meant when you guys all left this morning."

One of the older girls approached the group warily. She had spiky pink hair that was clipped back with burettes to reveal bright blue eyes like Syo's. "My name is Kurusu Sora, daughter of Kurusu Syo and Nanami Haruka." She ruffled her brother's hair, much to his displeasure. "Hayato was on the right track. It seems that you guys were switched with our parents, your future counterparts."

Hayato pushed Sora's hand away. "Let's not forget to introduce our other dads, Sora-neetan."

Sora pointed to Reiji, "Oto-chan." Then to Camus she said, "Oto-sama." She turned to Ai and smiled slightly, "We call him Tou-san thanks to Michi-neetan." She then turned to Ranmaru and smirked, "Kurosaki is Pops."

Hayato turned toward HEAVENS. Nagi immediately stepped back. 'Wait, we can't be part of this mess, right?"

A little boy who was maybe eight grinned sadistically as he turned his piercing purple eyes on the youngest idol. "Of course you are Tou-chan. You and Poppy," here he looked at Eiichi, "and Oto-san," he concluded with a glance at Kira.

Hayato poked the older boy. "Nii-san, introduce yourself."

The pink-haired boy blushed. "I was just getting there, Hayato!" he complained, ruffling the younger boy's spiky hair. "I'm Otori Akihiko, son of Otori Eiichi and Nanami Haruka."

"Eh!? Nanami hooked up with him!" Syo shouted with a disgusted look toward the leader of HEAVENS.

Eiichi, for his part, was too confused to be offended.

Otoya stepped forward. "I'm confused, why was you addressing all of us as parents. Aren't you Tokiya's son, Syo's daughter, and Otori-san's son?"

Hayato and Sora rolled their eyes as Akihiko fumed. "You guys aren't getting it, are you?"

Akihiko grabbed Haruka by the hand and marched toward the front of the group. "Since all of you morons fell in love with Mom, you ended up sharing her. Haven't you ever heard of polyamory? All of us siblings have Nanami Haruka for a mother and while one of you is our birth father, we are raised with sixteen dads."

"E-eh?" Haruka stuttered, looking at the guys in surprise. "That's difficult to process; no one other than Cecil-san has ever seriously mentioned any sort of interest in me. Why would anyone fall in love with me? Besides, it would hardly be fair to them." As she talked, she patted Akihiko's matching strawberry locks and he curled into her like a kitten.

The guys from STARISH turned away, both impressed and still somehow surprised by their princess's obliviousness.

Reiji hugged Haruka from behind. "Now that's not entirely true, My Girl. Now that the 'No Love' rule is gone, I can say it seriously. I love you." Reiji leaned in and kissed Haruka's forehead.

Akihiko mimicked gagging, and Nagi found himself liking the kid.

"E-eh!" Haruka squeaked tuning pink and burying her face in her hands.

Ren growled slightly and Masato clenched his fists as Reiji continued holding onto their composer.

Cecil tried to focus on Sora again. "How does the relationship work? Don't we get jealous about who spends more time with Haruka?"

Sora shrugged. "I don't quite know why it works, but I know that everyone is happy."

Haruka looked around at the other kids before asking, "How many kids are there?"

Hayato did a little count-off on his fingers before responding, "There are twenty of us in total. The others are back at the house. Oh, but these four should introduce themselves, right guys?"

Tokiya laughed. His son was an odd combination of Haruka's openness and his determination. All in all, Tokiya was finding himself quite impressed with the six year old.

"Wait, did you say twenty kids," Masato asked, looking like he might faint.

One the boys crossed his arms. Haruka guessed he was about the same age as Nagi, and she chuckled slightly to herself.

The boy answered Masato. "Yeah, there are twenty of us in total. Look, why don't we wait to go back to the house and then we can do this and introductions properly and in order."

A boy a few years younger pouted a little, but nodded as he scooped the toddler up and placed her on his shoulders. The little girl beside him tilted her head and stared at the idols with wise sea-green eyes before starting off on a path up the hill.

The boys warily followed the composer as she held hands with Hayato and Akihiko on the way to the gleaming (and rather intimidating) mansion at the top of the hill.

Within minutes, the seventeen 'parents' were gathered in a massive library that practically made Tokiya drool.

There were plush leather couches in the center, but along three of the four walls and up to the thirty foot ceilings were bookcases. The other wall had massive windows banked by a few mahogany tables with chairs. On every book-covered wall was one of those rolling ladders you only see in movies.

Hayato looked up at the older bluenette with a wide smile. "This is your space, Dad. This is your favorite spot in the house."

Tokiya offered a small smile. "I'm sure it's even better when I get to spend time with you."

Hayato gave his father a blinding smile before he bounced over to an intercom on the wall. "Minna-san! Please gather in the library. Michi-neetan and Masa-niitan, can you get Louis and Iori? It's important that we all be here, Mama and our dads from the past are visiting."

He heard a response on the intercom before he walked over to where Haruka was seated on the couch. "Mama, can I sit with you?"

The boys sweat-dropped. "He's a real Mama's boy," they all agreed mentally.

"I don't see why not," Haruka said, patting her lap. The younger bluenette curled up on her lap, wrapping an arm around her neck and snuggling against her chest. Tokiya could feel his heart melting; it was just so cute.

"Hey, I wanted to sit on Mom's lap!" Akihiko complained.

Eiichi watched his son curiously. The little boy had yet to so much as glance at him since dubbing him Poppy. Was he really a bad father? Was he too hard on his son the way his father had been on him?

Eiichi frowned. "Akihiko, why don't you come sit on my lap?" he offered, wanting to see his son's reaction. STARISH looked at him in surprise, probably wondering why the sadistic prince was being nice. Haruka smiled at Eiichi as she cuddled with Hayato.

"But Poppy, I sit on your lap all the time," the boy said in confusion.

Eiichi sighed in relief internally. "Well you haven't yet because I'm not your father yet. So come, on," he said, gesturing for Akihiko to come toward him.

The boy seemed to realize something as he made his way over to his father. When he sat with Eiichi, he whispered, "Don't worry, you're not like your dad. You love me enough to show it."

Eiichi looked away, surprised at the boy's perceptiveness, and a little embarrassed to have been caught being sentimental in front of the other guys.

Within a few minutes, more and more children began making their way into the library until a girl who carried an air of authority (as well as a squirming toddler) made her way into the room followed by another golden eyed boy holding a baby with light pink hair, a lot like his own, Nagi noted with a shudder.

The older girl convened with the intimidating boy from outside as she set the older of the toddlers down. After a moment, she turned to face the crowd, her long pink hair forming a temporary halo around her head.

"Minna-san, please line up." The younger kids immediately followed her orders despite the kind tone. Hayato and Akihiko even got up from their places and went to file in with the others from outside.

Finally the girl cleared her throat. "Konnichiwa, my name is Ichinose Michiko, I'm 17 years old, and I'm the oldest child in the Nanami household."

She may have had Haruka's hair color, but her eyes were the same cool, but wicked sharp blue as her father's.

Michiko offered a slight curtsy to the group before going to wait with the toddlers.

Cecil and the others looked at Tokiya in surprise. Ren whistled, "Well someone got busy."

Tokiya blushed and refused to look at the others, but he was secretly pleased that he had two kids with Haruka.

Next was the older boy from outside. He grunted, "I'm Hyuuga Kaname, 16 years old."

Now that they looked at him, his parentage was obvious. He had the same spiky orange hair, but he had heterochromia that resulted in one golden eye and one blue eye.

Syo could feel the beginning of a mental breakdown coming on as he realized his idol had a son with the girl of his dreams.

The next boy was the one who had followed Michiko into the library. He was one of the golden-eyed kids, but his blue hair was cut in a way that made everyone think Masato was his father before he even said it. "Hajimemashite, my name is Hijirikawa Masaru, 15 years old."

Masato blushed as he looked at Haruka, but he was pleasantly surprised as he looked over his future son.

"A mini Hijirikawa, great," Ranmaru grumbled under his breath.

Next was Sora who decided to introduce herself again. "As you know, I'm Kurusu Sora. I'm 14."

After Sora was a set of identical twins who were, undoubtedly, Otoya's with their bright red eyes. The first one had her pink hair cut to her shoulders while the other wore hers long and in pigtails. "Konnichiwa, minna-san," they chorused with a laugh. "I'm Ittoki Kiku," the first said. "And I'm Ittoki Kanon," her twin finished. "We're 13."

Otoya grinned as the girls came over and ruffled his hair. "Hiya, Daddy," they said before settling at one of the tables near the windows.

Masato, Tokiya, and Ai were doing the math to realize that Haruka didn't seem to get a break between kids. Everyone was a year apart so far, and they weren't even halfway through.

Next was the other unnamed boy from outside. He flashed a playful smile that highlighted his amber eyes. He had dark brown, but longish hair tucked under his fedora. "Hiya, Mom, Dads. I'm Kotobuki Yukio, 12 years old!"

Reiji let out a whoop in excitement. "I was right. A perfect mix of kouhai-chan and I!"

"Shut up," the other members of Quartet Night deadpanned.

Next in line was an icy pale girl with platinum blonde hair and white-gold eyes. Her mannerisms were cold and rigid as she curtsied. "I am Lady Alice Cryszard, Duchess of Permafrost. I am 11 years of age."

"Eh? Camus has a last name?" Cecil asked in surprise.

Alice glared at the prince. "No, Mother chose it for him."

While everyone was trying to shake the icy aura surrounding the girl, Camus looked at Haruka in surprise. Could he really be close enough to her for such an intimate act in the future? Ever since the Silk Queen had given him his name, he'd lived by it and no other.

The other guys wouldn't admit it, but they were getting jealous. Natsuki, Cecil, Ren, Ringo, Ranmaru, Kira, Ai, and Nagi had yet to be introduced to any kids who were genetically theirs. Though Ai was not really holding his breath due to his nature (POSSIBLE SPOILER!) as an android.

The next kid was a tall girl with Haruka's vibrant pink hair, but unlike her mother's hair, the girl's was a wild mess of curls that bounced whenever she moved.

"Konnichiwa! I'm Shinomiya Suzu-chan!" she announced, twirling so her lolita dress swished around her knees, the light green fabric really brought out her emerald eyes which sparkled like Natsuki's bedazzling kit. "I'm ten years old."

"Ah, so cute!" Natsuki praised as Suzu twirled for him. "You're just as beautiful as your mother!"

"Yeah, Mama is so pretty!" Suzu agreed as she skipped over to Haruka. She looked the composer over. "Hi Young Mama. You know, you don't age a day, people think you and Michi-neechan are sisters all of the time. She doesn't like that," Suzu giggled.

Michiko glared silently but didn't say anything. Suzu hugged Haruka and then went to sit with Natsuki.

Next was another pair of twins, this time a boy and a girl. Both were darker than the others with beautiful caramel colored skin. They were both a physical mix of Haruka and Cecil; they boy had Cecil's messy brown hair but his mother's warm honey gaze. Meanwhile, the girl had a hairstyle a lot like Haruka's, but her eyes were like the gateway to the sea.

"I'm Aijima Hajime," the boy introduced with a slight bow.

"And I'm his twin, Kagami. We're nine," she said with a light-hearted smile and a wave.

Cecil beamed. Thy were even more perfect than he had dreamed.

"Hi! I'm Jinguji Rena. I'm eight, and I'm Aki-chan's fraternal twin!" The next girl said as she hugged the pinkette beside her. She seemed to take pleasure in Akihiko's discomfort.

Ren and Eiichi looked at each other in horror. Everyone else was staring at them, Haruka included. Although, to be fair, Haruka was staring at whoever was announced as the biological father whenever one of the kids introduced his or herself. The guys were wondering, could Ren and Eiichi really have hooked up with Haruka on the same night?

Akihiko sighed. "No, Rena, we're not fraternal twins, the term is Irish twins. We are ten months apart. Somehow, she's the older one."

"Still my twin," Rena said with a playful grin. She stuck her tongue out and made her way over to Ren. She just stared at him expectantly until Ren caught on and patted his lap. The little golden girl plopped herself down and started braiding his hair.

"Yeah, whatever. So, as you probably figured, I'm eight too," Akihiko finished before going back to curl up with Eiichi.

Next was a little girl with short, light pink hair and electric teal eyes. "Ohayo, Mama and minna-san. M-my name is Tsukimiya Akina. I'm seven years old, and I like to play dress-up with Mama, Da, and my onee-chans," she said softly.

Reiji smiled. "My, my. It looks like Rin-chan is more of a threat than I realized."

Ringo tossed the other idol a wry grin. Though most people forgot, he and Reiji were the same age. Ringo was surprised his daughter was so quiet, but he figured that Haruka may have been like that as a child.

Ringo stood and walked over to his baby. "Oh my goodness! You are just the cutest thing," Ringo said as he scooped the little girl up and hugged her tight. "You are just like your mommy aren't you?"

"Well, I play piano like Mommy, but I sing like you, Da," Akina told him.

Ringo beamed and sat back next to Haruka with the little girl still in his arms.

After Akina was Hayato, who was, in fact, six. As soon as he was done re-introducing himself, he went back to curl up with Haruka as though he had never left her.

"You know," he said from his place with Haruka, "none of you look that different now. I mean Pa has a few gray streaks, but other than that, it's just the way you dress and a slight difference in your faces. Except for Tou-chan," here he offered Nagi a quick glance. "But that's understandable since he's the same age as Kaname-niitan at the moment."

Ryuuya grumbled about Hayato saying he had graying hair in the future, but then he remembered that the oldest child was seventeen. He was already thirty-two, so he was at probably at least fifty supposing Haruka and Tokiya conceived Michiko within the next year.

He then blushed, realizing what that entailed and how unlikely it would be that the twenty-year-old composer would give the okay to her bizarre harem. But, it was even more likely that at least one of the sixteen of them would not be okay with sharing. Ryuuya could barely believe he was warming to the idea slowly.

The next kid was a small, skinny boy with spiky pink hair and the most mesmerizing silver eyes. He glanced up at the crowd of parents from his big teddy bear. "I'm Kurosaki Taiki, five years old."

Ranmaru jolted upright in surprise. "This runt is mine?"

Taiki flinched as Ranmaru said runt. "Hey, Pops! We've been over this! You don't get to call me a runt. Jiiji has photos of you at my age and you were even more of a runt," Taiki huffed with a scowl.

Ranmaru grunted. "So my no-good dad shared pictures, huh? That bastard."

"Language," Michiko warned, her voice a few degrees colder than it had been earlier.

He ignored her and walked over to Taiki. "You've got spirit, Kid. I like that," he added with a smile. He moved to ruffle his son's hair, but the boy ducked and ran over to Ren.

"I don't want you to ruffle my hair, I want to sit with Babbo!" Taiki announced as he joined Rena on Ren's lap. He then stuck his tongue out at Ranmaru.

"Yep, definitely my kid," Ranmaru grumbled under his breath. He shuffled back to the couch and plopped down beside Reiji.

Haruka giggled, not missing the hint of a smile at the edge of the rocker's lips.

Michiko cleared her throat to gather attention back to the remaining kids.

She stood beside a petite girl with her onyx black hair pulled into two low pigtails. Her eyes were like yellow diamonds, not the warm amber that was inherent in Haruka. These eyes conveyed everything and nothing simultaneously.

Michiko introduced the little girl. "This is Sumeragi Shizuka. She's four, and she hardly ever talks."

Everyone sweat-dropped. "She's just like Kira," they all agreed silently.

Shizuka walked over to Kira, and tilted her head slightly, but then she broke into a wide smile. She tugged on his pants to signal to him.

Kira looked down at the tiny jewel that was his daughter in awe. He smiled at her gently before bending down and scooping her up, having understood what she wanted.

"Oi! I don't have a kid yet," Nagi whined.

Michiko rolled her eyes in a way that reminded everyone of the way Tokiya deals with Otoya.

"You are the youngest of our fathers, just be patient," she implored.

"Why does age have anything to do with it? Shouldn't it only matter how well I can seduce the girl?"

Nagi was intentionally ignored as they moved onto the next child.

"'Nichiwa," he mumbled shyly. "My name's Iowi."

"He means Iori," Michiko interjected. "Tou-san," she said, looking at Ai, "He's your son."

Ai blinked in surprise. True Iori looked just like he had as a young android, but Ai was a robot, he couldn't reproduce. "But, how?"

"Help from a friend or two," Michiko said mysteriously, but Ai and Reiji seemed to understand, but the others pondered the statement, clearly lost.

Reiji was felt such a wave of relief wash over him. So Aine had woken up in the future. He would have to find his friend later and figure out what happened.

"'Hayo!" Shrieked the youngest little girl excitedly. They recognized her as the last kid from outside. Now that she wasn't napping on Yukio's shoulders, she ran around like a little ball of energy. Her short pink hair was pulled up into a little ponytail on top of her head and decorated with a gray/brown butterfly clip to match her earthy eyes. As she ran, her pink dress poofed up like a jellyfish. "Chi-chan says 'hayo!"

Haruka cooed at the little princess as she ran her fingers through Hayato's hair. "Well aren't you just the cutest little thing," Haruka said as Chi-chan came over.

"Mama!" Chi-chan said proudly before dashing away again.

Michiko moved quickly and held the little girl still just long enough to untuck the hem of her dress from her potty-training diaper.

Getting up again, Michiko rubbed her forehead. "Chi-chan's full name is Kotobuki Chidori. She's two and a half."

"Oh yeah!" Reiji cheered. "Another victory for Rei-chan!"

Camus, Ranmaru, and Ai just sighed in unison, having given up trying to silence their older bandmate.

Michiko finally bent down to the last kid, and Nagi resigned himself to the fact that the helpless baby was probably his.

Michiko picked him up from his place playing with a light-up piano baby toy.

"Finally, our latest , and final, addition, Mikado Louis. He just turned one last week. He's shy around new people, but he should be fine around you guys."

Nagi got to his feet, walking over to the girl and moving to hold the little golden eyed baby. "So, you're mine, huh?" he asked Louis.

Louis stared at him cautiously. Nagi picked the baby up hesitantly, a surge of wonder washing over him as he stared at his future son. The baby was adorable and a perfect mix of Haruka and himself. Nagi found himself adjusting to the idea of settling down with the composer if this was the result. He could actually feel a tiny bit of affection forming as he raised his son in his arms.

Louis stared back at Nagi, letting out a slight whimper. But the next moment, he started screaming and crying. His wails were unbearable and Nagi freaked out, completely heartbroken at having his flesh and blood reject him.

"Oh my god! Haruka, take him!" Nagi panicked, almost throwing Louis to Haruka. Fortunately, he was close enough that Haruka was able to get a good grip on the baby before Nagi ran to the corner to sulk uncharacteristically.

While most of the guys were surprised by Nagi's intimate way of addressing the composer, Syo had to keep himself from laughing as the baby instantly calmed in Haruka's arms. "I think he just doesn't like you."

"Why doesn't he like me?" Nagi complained.

"You don't look the same as you do in our time. Most of you guys are already adults, but you aren't," Kaname explained. "You're like a stranger to Louis."

Syo took the baby from Haruka, and received only giggles. "It's true! He even recognizes me!"

"That's not fair! He's mine!" Nagi growled, glaring at Syo. He wanted to take the baby out of the other idol's hands, but at the same time, he didn't want to upset Louis again.

Michiko patted Nagi's shoulder awkwardly. She knew that he would eventually be one of her fathers, but at the moment, he was younger than she was, which made things really weird.

"Hey, it's okay. If you make an effort, Louis will notice. He hated Grandpoppy, or Raging Otori, as you you know him. Plus he wouldn't let any of the aunts and uncles hold him for eight months. He'll warm up to you because somewhere in you is a great dad, the dad he knows. So cheer up, yeah?"

Nagi looked at the girl in surprise.

"Was I a good dad to you?"

Michiko cracked a wry smile. "Yes, one of the best."

 **A/N: Whew, that was a pretty long chapter. Sorry if it was a bit rough, but I needed to introduce everyone so we could get the ball rolling. I will be trying to update regularly, but I'm taking summer college classes, and it's a bit hectic.** **HELP! Please review the chapter like you normally would, but let me know what you want to see in this story. I don't have a working plot, so I'm not sure where to go with the story.** **Just some notes for consideration:** **Reiji will be going to see Aine (I haven't played the games, but I've read about them).** **Two of the same person cannot exist in the same time which is why their older counterparts switched places with them.** **They shouldn't know exactly how far into the future they are.** **I guess that's it... Oh, also, how would you guys feel if some of the guys were affectionate with each other? not all of them, but some just being casual about affection and kissing each other or something?** **Please help me direct this story! Thank you all, ily!** **~Raine**


	3. Blow Up and Break Down

**A/N: Sorry if this chapter is kind of weird, I'm trying to build the premise of the conflict for the story, so there was a lot to set up. Sorry if Haruka is a little ooc. I needed to update, and this was what I was able to come up with, I hope you guys enjoy.**

 **You know the drill, Utapri isn't mine. Please R &R!**

When Michiko had finished giving Nagi a pep talk, she sat down across from Haruka, Tokiya, and Ringo.

"We have some things to discuss," she told them solemnly. "I know the circumstance may be confusing and disorienting, but please ask me anything you want to know, and so long as it isn't about anyone other than our family, I should be able to answer you. "

Ai looked at Michiko curiously. "What year is it?"

Everyone looked up expectantly, Syo even stopped playing with the baby in his lap momentarily.

Michiko winced. "If you really want to know, I can tell you, but it would really be better I don't. Knowing the timing might complicate things for all of you."

Ai tilted his head, processing her statement. "Very well, your refusal to answer tells me everything I need to know."

Nagi looked at Ai oddly. "What are you, a robot?"

Ai smirked. "Yes." There was no point in hiding it. STARISH already knew after he overheated last year at one of the shoots.

"What? Don't pull my leg," Nagi shot back, crossing his arms huffily.

"It is up to you to believe me, that does not change the facts," Ai returned evenly.

Nagi tried to hide the fact that he was staring at the teal-haired idol by glaring.

Tokiya cleared his throat. "So, Michiko, maybe you can explain how the whole 'sharing' thing works, because it honestly does not make sense. Why would we all agree?"

Michiko sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose the same way Tokiya always would when stressed. He picked up on the gesture, and tucked it away for later.

"Well, where do I start? Mom tries to divide her time between you guys, similar to the way you were in the Master Course. Sometimes you guys go out in smaller groups, sometimes all of us go out, sometimes you guys leave us here with our extended family." Michiko supported her head with her chin as she tried to figure out what they needed to know. "There is a master suite on the third floor, and you guys tend to take turns sleeping in Mom's room. I think there's a calendar."

Syo looked dumbfounded. "We use a calendar to decide who gets to spend time with Nanami?"

"I don't know that I'm okay with that," Ren added as Rena finished braiding his hair.

Taiki looked up at Ren from his place on the saxophonist's lap. "But Babbo, it's not like any of you would choose someone other than Mama. This was the only solution where all of you could be happy."

Ranmaru grunted, "I never even said I liked her. Why would I trip all over myself like those morons for her?"

Kaname muttered something under his breath as the guys went back and forth. "You guys are annoying. I see why Mom apologized in advance last night."

Nagi decided he had been ignored long enough. "Well, I'm not going to share Haruka. I intend to win her, even better if it's not fair and square."

"As much as I enjoy working with you, Nagi," Eiichi began, "The angel will be mine, and mine alone."

The kids shared worried glances as the fighting escalated. Tokiya was the first to notice Haruka looking at the ground, her fists clenched.

Just as Cecil returned a comment by Otoya with, "The Muses have decreed that my princess, Haruka, and I will be together," Haruka snapped.

"Enough!" she shrieked. The guys froze, turning to her in surprise. They had never seen Haruka look so mad, or even mad at all. Her eyes, which were normally warm and embracing like amber, were now unbearably hard to meet, like staring into the sun.

Michiko and Kaname shared a knowing look as Hayato stared at their mother in surprise. He had seen her do this once in his life, so seeing her snap at them now was rather surprising. He gingerly scooted onto Tokiya's lap, knowing that something was coming.

Haruka rose to her feet, her posture more rigid than Camus's. "I am very disappointed in you all," she said icily. Despite (or maybe because of) her tone, Camus was getting kind of turned on.

"I am not a carnival prize to be won. I am not a thing. I am a composer, whether you remember it or not. I love STARISH, that is true, but that is because they are my precious friends. Quartet Night have been very helpful, but I hardly know what they are like outside of work. I don't know anything about HEAVENS that can't be found with a quick internet search or from the recording studio. And then Tsukimiya-sensei and Hyuga-sensei are great for advice, but I have never looked at them as anything other than more former teachers."

STARISH looked crushed, and the others looked as though they were in various stages of shock or indignation. None of the idols had ever seen Haruka snap before, and it was terrifying because they had no idea what to do.

The kids shared a weary look, knowing that their plan would have to go into effect if they wanted to help things smooth over.

Haruka continued, her voice carefully measured, but still terrifying to the guys. "I am not in love with all of you, and I'm disappointed that you didn't even stop to consider my feelings. The kids are very cute, but only one person has earned my affection so far." Haruka sighed, the anger slipping with her shoulders. She started crying, her tears raining down her cheeks, making the guys instantly feel horrible. Her sobs grew louder, and she hid her face in her hands.

"I-I'm sorry, Hayato, Akihiko, Taiki, and everyone else, b-but I don't think I can do this." With that said, Haruka sprinted toward the door to the rose garden. Without a backward glance, she ran off outside.

Silence became a tangible force in the room as the guys ruminated on what they had done. They had fought for her (in front of her) as though she were the last slice of pizza. They all knew she was more than that. STARISH and Quartet Night were nothing without her, emotionally or otherwise, and the others had always had a soft spot for Haruka.

"Good going," Sora quipped as she broke the silence. "I take it that was the first time you've seen Mom's temper? She's only snapped like that three times that I can remember, but I think this was the worst. You literally said you were going to 'win her' as if she is a game."

Syo looked down guiltily, not liking the fact that they had left a bad impression on the kids.

"Wait a second," Reiji interjected. "She said one person has earned her heart. Could one of us be that person?"

"Well we know it isn't HEAVENS or the senseis based on her other statements," Ai added. He didn't know why, but he really wanted to be that person. He evaluated what she had said, and added forlornly, "Though it is most likely a member of STARISH since she has known them the longest."

Natsuki, Otoya, and Syo perked up. Otoya came up with an idea, "What if we each try to court Nanami and find out who she has fallen for? Or, maybe we should convince her to fall in love with us?"

Michiko cleared her throat uncomfortably, no matter how well they played at romance for work, her fathers were really bad at wooing her mom.

"That's a really bad idea, Otoya," Tokiya interjected before Michiko had to speak up. She watched as he steepled his fingers.

Ren nodded. "It is true that we need to have her fall for us, but that is not the way to figure out who has the lady's heart."

Michiko interrupted, "I might be able to help. Okay, out of the six people who wanted to partner with her at Saotome Academy, do you know who she had been planning to partner with before you all wrote your names down?"

"No," Ren said. "I never even asked," he finished, feeling slightly surprised that the little lady had had someone in mind. To think that she had chosen them all, he was suddenly a lot more grateful. The other guys made noises of agreement as they pondered the new information.

"Hmm. I guess she hadn't mentioned that, but she hadn't been planning on choosing all of you. Try to remember why Mom became a composer."

Natsuki said, "Oh, I know that one! She wanted to write songs for HAYATO!"

Hayato noticed a flickering of understanding in Tokiya's eyes, but he looked to afraid to say anything.

"You'll have to spell it out for them, they may not want to make the connection," Masaru whispered to his older sister.

"Okay guys," Michiko continued. "I'm the oldest child, who is my biological father?"

"EHHHHH!?" They all gasped, suddenly putting two and two together.

Otoya then whined, "She fell in love with Tokiya! What did you do to make her fall for you?"

"So Tokiya-kun was the one to win Haru-chan's heart," Natsuki added, looking impressed.

Tokiya blushed brightly as they other guys began asking him what he had done to capture Haruka's heart.

"I- I don't know," he managed to get out between prods from the other guys. "I just offered to take care of her whenever she was troubled. That night before the Utapri concert, when we went to see the fireworks, I had taken her to the street fair, I told her that someone like her needed someone by her side." Tokiya's blush was as vibrant as the sunset outside before he hid behind Hayato.

"Oh now," Ren sing-songed. "I didn't know Ichi had such a romantic side."

Cecil glared accusingly at the blue-haired idol. "So that's what you were doing before we got off of work! That's not fair!"

The other rainbow boys nodded in agreement as Tokiya looked mortified.

"Someone should go find Mom," Masaru reminded as the sun continued to set.

"Who should go?" Ai asked, looking around at the kids.

Kaname rolled his eyes. "Obviously Dad should. He's the only one who she trusts with her heart right now. It'd be bad to send one of us kids since she thinks she is failing us right now. It helps that Dad wasn't part of the 'I'm going to win her' argument. She probably made her way to the rose pavilion in the garden, that's always been her favorite spot. Though, since this is her past self, she might be lost since she hasn't been there yet."

The other guys bit back their objections as Tokiya looked to Kaname and Michiko for confirmation.

"Go to her," Michiko urged as she held Chi-chan.

Once Tokiya left for the garden, the other guys deflated slightly. "Don't worry," Sora told them. "The Dad from our time left a journal explaining that this would happen, besides, you'll get your turns to make Mom love you back."

"I never said I was in love with her," Ryuuya added.

"She is not of noble standing, so she would not make a suitable bride. Besides the fact that sharing is beneath me," Camus said.

"You never said you didn't love her in all of that," Reiji accused, tired of seeing his bandmates deny their feelings.

Camus blushed. "That is true; I never said I did not love her," he added more softly.

"Just because you're a count doesn't mean you shouldn't follow you heart!" Ringo scolded. "Now that there is no threat of Shining butting in, I will proudly say that I'm in love with Haru-chan!"

The others were taken aback by Ringo's passion as he continued. "Haru-chan has always been exceptional. Something about her is magnetic, drawing people to her light and warmth. There's a reason we are all here, and that reason is her. Without her, none of us would be where we are now."

"It's true," Masato added. "She was the one who inspired me to fight for my love of music and attend Saotome Academy. If I had never seen that beautiful, pink-haired goddess singing with children, I never would have had the courage to disobey my father. She was the reason I became an idol, and she supported me every step of the way, whether she knew it or not. I owe her everything."

Ranmaru was taken aback by Masato's passion. How could he so openly admit to the debt he owed her?

Ren was next. "When I was about to drop out of Saotome, she ignited a burning passion in my heart with her determination and adorable relentlessness. She's an inspiring little ball of cotton candy with a burning core and a heart of gold. The little lamb has been my precious person for years. Without her, I would probably be wasting my life wallowing around the family residence and breaking more hearts. Now I feel that without the little lady, it will be my heart breaking."

Rena smiled as she played with Taiki's hair. She knew that her Babbo was a big marshmallow inside his cool, playboy appearance.

Natsuki followed, his tone surprisingly serious. "Every since I was little, I've always felt like a part of me was hidden, missing, maybe. I've always felt like no one could ever love all of me, because there's that part that feels dark and broken, but Haru-chan has always accepted me as I am. She's so understanding and sweet. Haru-chan is like the first breeze in spring, her whole being refreshes and heals me. I never wanted to share her, but," here he teared up, "without her, I don't think I could go on. If she will have me, I don't mind sharing, especially if it means that I get to stay with her and have this family."

Nagi was getting slightly ill at all of the confessions, but as much as he wanted to tell them to shut up and stop being goss, the words stuck in his throat. Over the last few years, he had become secretly fond of the composer, even if he only saw her at work. It had gotten to the point where just a glimpse of her hair in the halls of the recording studio made his heart falter and his lungs forget to work. Her warm smile, though almost never aimed at him, was enough to put him in a good mood even when Eiichi was late or the staff mixed up his order. Just her presence was comforting to Nagi, and he hated it.

Syo decided to go next even as he continued to play with Louis. "She's so strong and so composed, but she's also so innocent and clumsy. I want to be by her side to protect her and learn from her. Nanami is the only person who I feel really gets me. She and I share so much; I really am hopelessly in love with her." Here Syo laughed before continuing. "It feels good to finally get that off of my chest after four years. So yeah, I guess what I'm saying is that I want to be with her, even if it means that she will never be wholly mine, that's good enough because I'm all hers."

Cecil looked up briefly, still ashamed of the way he had upset Haruka earlier. "I've never been shy about my affection toward Haruka. Ever since we first met, I knew that she was special. There is something magical about her and her music, that's why I believe she is an incarnation of the Muses." Here he finally brought his head up to face them all. "Without her, I never would have met all of you. My dearest friends, our rivals and teachers. Without her, I would be trapped on a throne, tied with invisible strings and made to dance by my step-father and cousins." Cecil teared up slightly, and Otoya put a hand on his shoulder. "Haruka saved me, she set me free in so many ways, and if I can be good enough to have even a part of her, then I will be the happiest man on the planet."

Otoya heaved a deep sigh. "I love Nanami, truly, but I didn't even consider this as a possibility. Though to think that all this time, Tokiya was the one she really loved... I don't know how to feel. I need Nanami's music. She makes me happy just by being near, and without her, I'm afraid I'd never be the same. So much of who I am now is because of her and all of you. If I get to see her everyday, I'd be happy, so I guess I wouldn't mind sharing all that much." Here he blushed and stuttered, "T-though only if she want to! I never want to upset her like that again."

Kiku and Kanon smiled at each other as their daddy finished. "They're learning," Kanon whispered, and Kiku's grin widened.

"I'm not about to dole out a gooey confession or anything," Ranmaru began, ignoring the many eye-rolls from the kids, "but I do know that I've ever met such an interesting girl. She's passionate and talented, undoubtedly, but she's still so innocent and cute." Ranmaru glared as Ren and Masato stared at him. "That's it, idiots, pick your jaws up off the floor."

Kira surprised everyone by speaking next. "I like her. Her songs are beautiful."

Eiichi and Nagi stared at their bandmate in surprise. "EHH!? Kira too? That's the most he's said since the Entry Contest!" Nagi exclaimed.

Chi-chan ran up to him and parroted, "Contest! Contest!" Then she thought a moment and asked, "Whas dat?"

Nagi was surprised by the two-year-old's approach, so he backed away a little, but she just climbed on his lap and asked again. "Whas a contest?"

"Umm... when people fight for something, that's a contest," Nagi tried to explain, not sure if she would understand.

"Oh!" Chi giggled before running off, shouting, "Something! Chi-chan fights for something!" Reiji resisted the urge to pick her up and tickle her or play with her, but he needed to voice his thoughts before playing with the little cutie.

Clearing his throat, the others turned to the oldest member of Quartet Night. "Kouhai-chan is adorable, that much is obvious, but her radiance is through and through. Even though she is oblivious to our advances, she is amazingly perceptive when it comes to embodying out essence in song. She was able to find the real me within, the part that no one knows or sees, the side that I have worked to bury for so long. Yet within a few days, she had seen it and captured it in song. She's incredible, and I would be lying if I said I was not madly in love. I want to stay beside her and grow old with her, even if you are all there too." Now that the seriousness was done, he cracked a slight smile and scooped Chidori into his arms. "Besides, maybe it'll be fun, after all, life here looks like it would never get boring." He laughed as he blew raspberries on Chi's stomach, making her shriek and giggle.

Chi shouted, "Oto-chan! Stop!" in between her peals of laughter.

Ai whispered, "I don't even know what love is. Is it a pounding heart and a happiness at seeing the person? My sources say you may begin to crave seeing the person; you may find them irreplaceable. Haruka makes me feel that way. I don't know what she is to me exactly, but when she is near, I feel like everything will be alright. It's completely illogical, so I don't understand why I feel this way, she's only human. And yet, I want to see her; I want to spend time with her; I want her attention; I want to be with her." Ai began tearing up, and he looked surprised. "What is this feeling? Why am I crying? I'm a robot, I don't have real feelings, right? Please excuse me."

Michiko teared up as Ai talked. She knew he was a robot, they all did, but that never meant he didn't feel every bit as strongly as her other fathers.

Eiichi and Ryuuya stayed silent the whole time, still mulling things over, not quite sure what to do yet. They were too busy dealing with their conflicting feelings about the situation to give a response.

Through it all, Nagi had stayed relatively composed, but when Ai finished, he couldn't take it any more.

"That's enough! How can you just blurt things out like that! How can you agree to share! I don't want to share! I want her to love me and me alone! No one has ever loved me for who I am, why can't I have this!" STARISH and Quartet Night looked surprised by his outburst, but Ryuuya and Ringo had heard bits of the cosmically cute superstar's tragic backstory from Shining, and Eiichi and Kira knew.

Nagi broke down, his knees collapsing as he sank to the floor. "My birth parents ditched me when I was five, and my adoptive parents never cared about me until I became an idol, and then it was only to show me off. My nannies were paid to like me, but as soon as their job was done, I became invisible. My fans don't know anything about me other than stats and a stage persona; that's not love. Love doesn't exist. How can it? But if it does exist, I need it all. I want to keep it all to myself so no one can take it away."

The guys were shocked to hear Nagi's story; they never would have guessed how much he hid behind his sarcasm and presumptuousness. Every little thing in his life was an act, he was just as fractured as any of them, so it made sense that he too would seek Haruka. She always had so much love for everyone, no wonder Nagi wanted her for his own.

Nagi sobbed harder as Michiko got down on her knees and hugged him from behind. "Shhh...It's okay now; it's okay. You'll never have to be alone or feel unloved again. Mom loves you just as you are, not as a thing to show off. The other fathers love you too, you are an important part of the family, and all of us kids love you too. You're so much more than your parents will ever know, you always have been. It's going to be okay now; we're here."

He slowly managed to pull himself together as the others sat in silence. The younger kids, from Suzu down, came over and gave Nagi a group hug that he pretended to be annoyed by, but he really appreciated. "Thank you," he whispered, looking at the floor. As much as he wanted Haruka to himself, he realized that if this future didn't come to be, neither would this family. Maybe they were worth sharing for.

 **A/N: I apologize if this seemed like Tokiya is superior, I just feel that he is likely who she fell for first since he was her goal in the music industry and the street fair... But the other guys will have their turns. Next chapter, the kids have a plan to convince Ryuuya, Eiichi, and Haruka that this is the way things should be and Tokiya gets his time with Haru to confess and stuff, and each chapter I'll try to have family fluff as she falls for each of the guys. Please review, let me know what you thought, this wasn't a very fluffy chap, more like the basis for the drama, but it'll get fluffier from here on out. I promise. Thank you all!**

 **~Raine**


	4. Midnight Confession and Small Pajamas

**A/N: Thank you all for your support of this story so far! The reviews are very encouraging to read. I was trying to do fluff, and parts of it turned out a little steamy, so there is a reason why this story is rated T for teen. Just because I have to, let's get this over with: I don't own Utapri. Without further ado, here is the new chapter!**

...xxXXxx...

Tokiya walked out the French door, feeling several glares on his back as he went in search of Haruka. Once outside, he was refreshed by the incoming sea breeze. The salty wind caused the rose bushes beside him to dance slightly, like beautiful guardians, protecting the way to Haruka.

As he picked his way through the maze, he admired the delicate, but intense, beauty of the roses while they lit up in the evening sky. For some reason, this particular species looked familiar, and Tokiya realized it it they were Lady Haruka roses, the ones Ren had created just for her.

He felt a pang of jealousy at first, but then he realized that the roses really were perfect for Haruka. The dusty reddish pink of the petals caught the light the same way as her hair. The delicate-looking petals were surprisingly sturdy in the breeze, and further down, the stem had a few small, but (as he found out when he went to pull one stem closer) deceptively sharp thorns.

After about five minutes, Tokiya finally made his way to the white marble pavilion in the center of the maze, and sure enough, there was Haruka. She was watching the cascades of the waterfall-fountain as its waters coursed down the gray-blue rock wall beside her.

Tokiya felt a sharp pain in his heart again as he noticed the drying tears tracks on her face; he never wanted her to have to cry again. He didn't want her to be sad ever again, he wanted to make her smile. More than anything, he wanted to make her happy.

As Tokiya reached the edge of the pavilion, he paused to stare at her affectionately. After meeting Michiko and Hayato, Tokiya was even more sure that he was making the right choice by confessing. He suddenly froze as he remembered that she actually liked him back. He didn't know what to do, he'd never been in a situation of mutual affection before. It had always been girls confessing to him, and him not being interested. The few times he had liked girls, he'd been too focused on school or work to bother. He racked his brain, trying to figure out how the guys did it in those books he read.

'Damn it, Tokiya!' he scolded himself. 'All of those books and you don't know what you're doing. Just go up and say that Michiko basically told me that you love me too, would you like to go out? That would be awful.' He sighed.

Haruka whipped around as soon as she heard the noise, quickly trying to fix her appearance. "I-Ichinose-san!" she squeaked as she brushed her skirt and used her handkerchief to dab at her drying eyes.

Tokiya stood still, paralyzed by the fear of screwing this up.

Haruka stared at him as he made no indication of moving. "U-um? Are you okay? Ichinose-san?"

Finally able to gather his wits enough to remember that he was supposed to be checking on her, not the other way around, Tokiya snapped out of his trance. "Ah, I'm sorry. I came out here to see how you are doing, but it seems that I messed up."

Haruka giggled slightly at Tokiya's flustered face.

He made his way over to the wrought-iron bench, sitting down beside her as he steepled his fingers. "On behalf of the others, I apologize for our behavior."

Haruka's smile faded, turning into a slight frown. "I appreciate the gesture, but please don't take the blame. You didn't do anything wrong. I was just surprised that everyone would suddenly fight over me like that; it was if I wasn't even there. It made me feel like a prize. You and Hijirikawa-san stayed out of it along with Sumeragi-san, Hyuuga-sensei, Mikaze-senpai, and Kurosaki-senpai, so I am not upset with you guys."

Tokiya took a deep breath. "You should know that they didn't mean to treat you like a thing. They can't help themselves." He paused, realizing that he made it sound like their actions were defensible. "That's not to say that they were in the right. What they did was wrong and demeaning, but my point is that they didn't mean it. They are all in love with you, whether they admit it or not. But they are still idiots who have much to learn." Tokiya finished the thought as another came to him. "I think that's why we are all here."

Haruka tilted her head, looking at Tokiya intensely. "What do you mean?"

"Well all of us were obviously gathered by Saotome-san for a reason, and now I am sure the reason is because of our feelings for you. All of us love you so much that we want you to always stay by our sides. I think Saotome knows that, and he sent us here to show us that we don't have to fight each other, but we should instead try to get along. All of us need you," he blushed," or, at least, I need you."

Haruka's cheeks lit up like the pink on the horizon as Tokiya said that.

He continued, his blush not fading. "Without you, I would still be living in my own shadow, stuck being HAYATO and doing comedy. Because you inspired me and pushed me to sing, I finally debuted as myself, and every day, I get to do what I love. I owe everything to you. Because you accepted me even when I wasn't your idol, because you told me you wanted to hear my song. You are the reason I am who I am today, and for that, I want to give you the world."

Haruka squeaked in surprise as Tokiya took her hand and kissed it gently. First the back of the hand, then the palm along the curve of her thumb, and finally between her middle and ring fingers. "Nanami-san...no... Haruka, I am in love with you so much that it hurts. You have had my heart ever since the day I wrote your name down for the audition. I know I am not perfect, but I would like to stay by your side to grow with you and learn from you."

Haruka started crying again, and Tokiya panicked. Did he say something wrong? Was Michiko sure that she loved him? Just as Tokiya was spiraling into depression, he was surprised by Haruka throwing herself into his arms.

"I love you too. I have since the trip to the island when we were still at the academy. But I didn't want you to get expelled or fired, so I never said anything." Tokiya relaxed as he realized she was crying tears of joy. He returned her embrace, pulling her closer and kissing her forehead as she talked. "Though, you were never just HAYATO to me. After I learned the truth, I began falling for you, but I never thought you would ever like me back."

"Why wouldn't I fall for you?" Tokiya asked as he rocked her in his arms.

Haruka looked up at him. "Well, I'm just a composer. You are an idol, you could have had your pick of famous women who are much prettier and smarter, and less clumsy. I'm always causing trouble for you and the others, that's why I don't understand how they could have fallen for me," she babbled until he silenced her with a brief kiss.

"Haruka," he began, brushing her hair behind her ear, "I don't want an idol girlfriend, I want you. You are the most beautiful and talented woman I have ever met. And while you are clumsy, it is rather endearing," he added with a smile. "We all fell for you because you seem to have the ability to read us like an open book no matter how deeply we bury our true selves. You have become invaluable to everyone sitting back in that library, and to me."

He held her close, rocking her slightly and kissing her forehead. He pulled away, staring into her beautiful amber eyes as he used his thumbs to wipe her tears. "See," he whispered, "a smile suits you best; it's just as I thought."

Haruka giggled as he leaned down and kissed her nose. "Ichinose-san, it tickles!" she squeaked.

He paused. "Haruka, please, call me Tokiya," he begged.

She blushed as she tested his name on her lips. "T-Tokiya."

He almost got a nosebleed as she said his name, her posture and tone so demure and innocent. "Haruka, I want to kiss you again," he said suddenly, making the poor composer blush harder. "May I?"

Haruka nodded, closing her eyes and pursing her lips. Tokiya thanked the gods that he had more self control than Ren because he wanted to take her right then and there. Smiling to himself, he leant down, gently closing the gap between himself and the love of his life.

Haruka stayed still at first, out of practice and not quite sure what to do, but as Tokiya's lips began moving, she started to fall into rhythm with him, creating a song with him that consisted of pants, little moans, and the whisper of their lips moving in harmony.

As the kiss turned into making out, Haruka surprised them both by moving onto his lap and pulling his head down to hers. Tokiya groaned in surprise and pleasure as she bit his lower lip gently before releasing it with a pop and pulling away.

"You're better at that than I thought you would be," he blurted out. As soon as the words left his mouth, he was absolutely mortified. "Ah, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply any-... are you laughing at me?" he asked as she snickered.

"You're very funny," she whispered in his ear, making him shiver. "It's cute." He expected to see a devious look on her face, but her cheeks were so red that he could feel the heat waves radiating off of her. He smiled as he realized she was far more embarrassed than he was, and her attempts at being seductive made her really flustered.

"Any chance you'll tell me who the lucky guy was?" Tokiya questioned, partially wanting to see more of her adorable blush and partially wanting to know who had taught Haruka how to kiss like that.

Haruka looked like she was tying to give an devious smile, though the effect was almost completely nullified by her fervent blush. "I-it wasn't a guy. Tomo-chan used to practice with me- for acting!" she added quickly when she realized how that sounded. Tokiya tried to muffle his laughter in his hands, but Haruka looked mortified anyway. When she looked upset, he held his hands up in surrender before patting her head. "Tomo-chan makes a good teacher," she defended.

"I'm sure she does, but I'm actually surprised Saotome didn't interfere, even if you were just practicing."

Haruka seemed relieved that Tokiya had taken the news well, but she was still flustered that he wanted to know more about her 'training'. "Um...Remember, only boy-girl relations were forbidden at the Academy. Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure she had fun teasing the other original members of STARISH by kissing me, though you were never there to see it."

Tokiya's nose started to bleed as he imagined Haruka making out with the fiery redhead, but he tried to flush such thoughts from his head. "Really? So why, exactly, did she say she was teaching you?" he asked her as he brushed a strand of her hair back.

Haruka giggled at his persistent curiosity, a light blush adorning her soft cheeks. "Tomo-chan thought it would be better to practice for guys. Luckily for you, we are not actually in love with each other."

"Yeah, lucky me," Tokiya whispered, trying to suppress his dirty thoughts that involved both girls and very little clothing. He kissed her cheeks, tasting the salt from where the tears had been. "I just wonder what you were doing when you went out with her earlier..."

Haruka fumbled for a moment, stuttering incoherently at his implications. "W-we didn't do anything like that! I haven't kissed anyone in years," she blurted out, thoroughly frazzled.

Tokiya clutched his stomach as he started laughing hysterically. It took him a few minutes of Haruka pouting on his lap before he could calm himself down. "You are just too cute, it's not fair," he whispered in her ear, making the composer shiver.

She leaned down, kissing his lips again, but staring into his eyes this time. He watch her as she pulled herself closer until their chests were touching and her soft curves were pressed against his toned form. "Tokiya, I love you," she murmured against his lips, her eyelids falling slightly so that she was looking up at him from beneath her lashes. Her amber eyes seemed to catch fire in the last light of the evening sun. Her slender fingers quickly buried themselves in his hair as his hands moved to her hips.

As they kissed, Tokiya was barely aware of the sun sinking below the horizon. He never pulled away even when the sun faded and the only light came from the shining moon overhead and the guide lights underfoot. When he finally broke their contact, leaving them both breathless, Tokiya watched the pink-haired beauty as her chest heaved, the oxygen flooding her deprived lungs.

When he could speak again, the first thing he said was, "I love you, too, Haruka." He cupped her face gently in his right hand. "I am so in love with you. Your laugh, your smile, your presence. Everything about you drives me insane and grounds me at the same time. I go crazy for you, but I'd go crazy without you." He gave her lips a gentle peck as he intertwined their hands. "I want to spend my life by your side, singing your songs, protecting you, growing with you as an artist. You are my everything, Haruka."

She leaned forward suddenly and kissed his nose, making the normally composed man blush like crazy. "I accept your offer," she giggled, standing up suddenly, disappointing Tokiya slightly.

She still held his hand, though, and she used it to pull him up from the bench. She dragged him through the dimly-lit maze, only hitting a dead end once, before pulling Tokiya to the other exit of the maze, this one right above the beach.

Tokiya was surprised when she pulled him toward the surf. He stumbled as she dragged him a little to fast, and he ended up falling and pulling her down with him.

She let out a started squeak when he fell on her, but she quickly burst out laughing when she saw how mortified he looked.

"It's not funny, you know," he grumbled. To get back at his princess, he stared leaving a trail of kisses along her neck, making her shriek and giggle. He was surprised when he reached the joint of her neck and shoulder that she let out a loud moan.

Haruka flushed in embarrassment when she realized the lewd noise that she'd just made. "Ah, I'm sorry. I made things awkward. I didn't mean to-" she was cut off as his lips crashed against hers with the force of all his pent up desire and frustration.

She moaned again when his hands ghosted along her waist. His breath a hot against her lips as he passionately murmured, "No more apologies."

When he pulled his lips away from hers, she made a disappointed noise, but she let out a little gasp when he started sucking on her neck. His lips and tongue would tease the milky skin, just barely grazing it with his teeth. Haruka continued her little gasps until he bit down suddenly. She let out a startled cry that quickly became a moan when he brushed his tongue over the afflicted area.

While Tokiya continued his assault on her neck, Haruka decided to distract him by nipping at his ear. Then it was Tokiya who let out a startled groan.

He pulled away just enough to look into her eyes, asking permission to go farther, to which she nodded.

His long fingers moved toward the zipper on her dress as her hands toyed with the hem of his shirt. Before continuing, Haruka pulled him up for one last breathtaking kiss, their tongues brushing against each other as the two musicians struggled to explore each other's every inch.

...xxXXxx...

Back inside the manor, the other guys were getting concerned at the fact that the other two hadn't returned after an hour. When asked, Michiko had shrugged uncomfortably before saying, "Not to worry you, but I don't think you'll be seeing them the rest of the night."

"Eh! Are they going to be okay?" Natsuki asked in concern, making the other guys cringe. Ren and Reiji in particular caught Michiko's drift, and they were not sure how to feel. Ren was really jealous, but the fact that Michiko was so confident in the situation made him think that she already knew everything they would be doing while in the future. If that were true, then he would have to trust that he would get his chance to woo the lady.

After a few minutes of palpable silence, Michiko, Kaname, and Masaru got up and started to leave, picking up the toddlers who were already sleeping on their fathers' laps.

Michiko turned back to look at them from the doorway. "You may as well follow me. After I tuck Iori in, I'll show you to your rooms."

The guys got up reluctantly, most of them still annoyed with Tokiya and not wanting to leave him alone with the composer. As the other kids filed out of the room, the idols shuffled along after them, really torn and emotionally overwhelmed.

They followed Michiko up to the second floor, where they said goodnight to most of the kids, before Michiko tucked Iori in. The mini-Ai (as most of the guys thought of him) slept in the pale green nursery alongside Chidori and Louis. Natsuki was entranced by the cute animal murals on the walls, but Masato was drawn to the family tree on the far wall.

The painting was of a cherry blossom tree with beautifully rendered petals that looked like they were done in Ren's drawing style. Each branch of the tree had the name of one of the children they had met, done in Masato's own calligraphy style, and closer to the trunk were the names of the seventeen parents and little branches with the names of their family members.

Masato was tempted to look for who his sister would end up with, but he realized that knowing too much about the future would do no good for him. Kira simply stood by the windows, looking out for a moment and then sliding the curtain closed, a look somewhere between embarrassment and boredom on his face. When Nagi tried to peek out the window, Kira simply shook his head and pushed his friend away. "You're too young to watch," he admonished quietly.

"EH!," Nagi whined, almost waking the kids. When the others shushed him, Nagi lowered his volume. "I ought to strangle that stupid fossil for getting so close to her," he growled, clenching his fists.

"Tokiya would never do anything without Nanami's say-so," Otoya informed, although he was also exceedingly jealous. "If they are doing anything, it is because Nanami wanted to."

The three oldest kids tried to hide their vicious blushes as their fathers talked about what their mom and dad were doing on the beach.

Once the three youngest were tucked in, Kaname and Masaru broke off from the group after saying good night. Michiko just squared her shoulders and led them up another flight of stairs. Ai was surprised and upset by the burden she seemed to carry.

Even though Michiko was still a teenager, she appeared to run the household in the absence of her parents. 'She probably never got a chance to be babied. From the time she was young, she was likely forced to be a caring big sister,' he thought sadly. Ai stowed the information for later use, deciding that, should this future come to be, he would baby this daughter.

The third floor was a large penthouse suite. When they first walked in, even Camus was impressed by the lavish decor. The style was ornate, but cozy; a good fit for Haruka, he thought. The count then glared to himself as he realized he was just thinking about her again. What was wrong with him? He had sworn loyalty to his queen, but now his heart was being pulled at by a woman who would never really be his.

The last few hours had really confused Camus. He wanted to stay loyal to his queen, but after meeting Alice and the other kids, his heart yearned even more for the pink-haired beauty. Even though he knew she was currently in the arms of another, he still wanted her. Even if he would only get to see her while surrounded by his rivals, he wanted to see her. He wanted her. Even though he knew she was in love with Ichinose, he wanted her. He wanted her love too, he wanted her to feel even a fraction of the longing he felt for her.

Camus snapped to attention when he realized he had zoned out. The other guys had spread out through the main room, walking around the plush couches and admiring the feel of the space.

Michiko suddenly drew their attention again by clapping twice, sharply. "If you follow me, I will point you to your bedrooms. Pajamas are probably somewhere in the dressers, that is if you wear pajamas," she added, looking at Ren with an annoyed expression.

She pointed to the central room. There was a white dove painted on the door. "That is Mom's room." On the same wall as Haruka's door, there were four more doors on either side. Along each of the two shorter side walls were four doors.

Michiko pointed to the door on the far left, this one with a maroon bass guitar emblazoned on the door. "That's Pops' room," she told them. She pointed to the other three doors along that wall before adding, "The pale blue snowflake is Oto-sama, the green key is Oto-chan, and the teal heart is Tou-san."

She moved toward the right-hand wall as Quartet Night went to look at their rooms. "On the far right is Pa with the burgundy dragon, Oto-san has a white-gold diamonds, Poppy has the violet flames, and Tou-chan has the silvery crown." When Ryuuya and HEAVENS moved toward their rooms, only STARISH and Ringo were left, and they were pleased to be along the same wall as Haruka.

Michiko sighed again, trying to stay focused on getting her fathers sorted out. This was really too much. She knew they were coming, her real parents had been preparing for this for months, but when they said things would be left to her, she did not realize how intense it would be. Even if just for once, she wanted to not have to worry about taking care of her family. Just once she wanted to be a kid like her siblings got to be.

When she noticed Cecil giving her a concerned look, she pulled herself together. "Alright, so I'm going to work outward from Mom's door. First, right next to Mom would be Dad with the purple wings and Daddy with the red whole note. Next out from them are Babbo with the sunset-colored rose and Father with the blue cherry blossoms." Michiko paused to let the three members of STARISH move toward their rooms. Everyone chose to ignore the tension over the fact that neither Haruka nor Tokiya were there to see their rooms. Michiko knew it didn't need to be said, she could see the tension in the way the fifteen men squared their shoulders and locked their jaws.

"Right, so... Père's door has Piyo-chan on it, Papa's has the hot pink star, Baba's has his tattoo, but in turquoise, and finally Da has sugar pink lips. Anyway, pajamas should be easy to find if they aren't laid out. I'm going to leave you for tonight," she finished, giving a stiff bow that made the guys realize how rude they were being.

Even if they were mad at Tokiya, they hadn't meant to let it influence how they treated the kids. Michiko, they realized, was put in an especially awkward situation. Between what her biological father was doing and the fact that she was in charge of them in a way, they could see the tension around her eyes.

"Mi-chan," Natsuki called, making her freeze before she could leave. "We're sorry. We must be inconveniencing you. It must be hard enough being the eldest when all of our older counterparts are here, but now that you're stuck with us, it must be so much harder." Natsuki pulled his future daughter into a surprisingly normal (not bone-crushing) hug, patting her head.

Michiko was surprised by the sudden, gentle, gesture. It really was just like her père would do when she got upset as a small child. When she remembered her parents, she started tearing up. When combined with Natsuki's gentleness, she started crying, burying her face in his shoulder.

"There, there," he soothed. "You're such a good girl, Mi-chan. I can see why our future selves trust you so much."

"Yes," Ren agreed, stroking her hair softly. "But you don't need to suffer alone. You are just like your mother in that respect; always trying to shoulder everything alone."

Nagi stepped forward. All evening, Michiko had been trying to comfort him, but he hadn't realized how much she was hurting too. This had to be hard on her. Gathering his wits, he went to comfort his future daughter, suppressing the awkwardness of her being older than him.

"Hey," he called, making the girl look up. When he saw her expression, he softened a bit. "You don't have to handle everything alone. We're here too. If you need anything, you should just tell us. Don't be afraid to make us work, we're pros after all."

Michiko started giggling. The guys were all pleased to find that her bell-like laugh was a lot like Haruka's. All of STARISH as well as most of the others unanimously thought, 'I want to have this daughter. I want this future.'

Even Ryuuya and Eiichi were touched by Michiko, but their pride would not admit defeat yet.

Once Michiko had calmed down, she bid goodnight to the guys, heading back down the stairs. They all spent some time looking around their respective rooms and putting on pajamas.

They didn't talk to each other at all until they suddenly heard Nagi give an indignant, and rather frustrated cry. After gathering around his room to find out what happened, they found the cute idol fuming.

"What happened now?" Syo groaned.

Nagi glared, "Shut it, Shota-boy!"

"Did you just call me a shota!"

"Yeah I did, got a problem with that?"

Before Syo could give a comeback, Eiichi interrupted, "Nagi, what happened that you made that inhuman noise?"

Nagi glared at his bandmate, muttering about inhuman noises and Eiichi being a pain. Finally, when Kira stared at him, the teen snapped, "It's my older self! He bought smaller night clothes just for me! It only highlights the fact that I'm out of my league! I'm too young right now, and he's reminding me of that!"

The others sighed, looking away from the fuming idol. No matter how things were put, Nagi was the youngest, the only non-adult in the group.

Syo was the only one who could think of something to say. "Why are you complaining? It means you'll get taller, right? And when that happens, you'll be an adult. Stop whining, put on the damn pajamas, and go to sleep already!"

...xxXXxx...

As Michiko headed to her room, she noticed a light on in Hayato's room. She groaned. What was her brother still doing up this late? The other kids had gone to sleep nearly an hour ago.

After knocking once, Michiko waited to hear the muffled 'come in' from her baby brother.

When Hayato saw Michiko, he looked as if she'd just caught him taking the last cookie.

"What are you still doing up?" she asked, placing her hands on her hips. "You should be asleep."

"But Nee-tan...," Hayato begged, giving her puppy eyes, "I was just so excited by our younger parents visiting. Can't I just stay up and draw them a little longer? Please!"

"Fine," she sighed, knowing that he was in one of those artistic moods. He started to get excited when she consented, but he froze when she continued. "But first, go brush your teeth and put on you PJs."

"Yes, Ma'am," Hayato saluted, running over to his bathroom to brush his teeth.

Michiko rolled her shoulders, relieved when they popped and released some of her tension.

"Hey, Nee-tan," Hayato called from the bathroom. "Why does Mommy hate Dad's clothes?"

"Huh?" she asked, dumbfounded. "Why would you think she hates his clothes?"

"Well, right now it looks like she's trying to tear his shirt off. That's weird, I like that shirt; I thought Mommy would too."

"Hayato, what do you mean right now?" Michiko panicked, running toward the pale blue bathroom. When she got there, she found Hayato looking out the window.

"Huh, can't you see, she must really hate that shirt? And it looks like he doesn't like her dress either. That's weird, they are both rather fashionable."

Michiko was mortified as she looked out the window. She immediately shut the blinds. "Haha, well... you know Dad, he's always pretty blunt with what he likes and dislikes. And then Mom must not be a fan of the way that shirt looks on him. He should have tried it on before leaving the store," she babbled, internally face-palming at her stupid explanation.

Hayato looked at his sister oddly for a moment. "How irresponsible of Dad. He's usually so particular about what he wears. Oh well," he concluded, hopping off of his step stool and skipping over to his bed.

"Nee-tan," he called when she sighed in the bathroom. "Aren't you gonna say goodnight?"

"Ha...ha...of course, silly me." Michiko was just exhausted. At least the plan for tomorrow would let her sleep. "Alright, troublemaker," she warned, "as soon as you finish the sketch, go to bed. Got it?"

"Yep," Hayato agreed, already back to sketching.

"Well then, good night, Hayato."

"'Night, Nee-tan," he called back.

...xxXXxx...

The next morning, Haruka woke up in Tokiya's arms, draped in his shirt. She smiled, shifting slightly to look at his sleeping face. 'He looks so peaceful,' she thought, her smile widening.

A moment later, Tokiya shifted, waking up to find his lover smiling down at him. "Good morning," she whispered, kissing his cheek.

"Good morning, Haruka," he murmured, pulling the pink-haired beauty back down to his chest. Haruka giggled slightly, pushing him away.

"Tokiya," she complained, her eyes twinkling, "we have to go back to the house."

His smile faded as he realized how pissed the other guys would be, but he nodded, knowing they had to face the others sooner rather than later.

After re-dressing, the pair climbed the stone path back to the manor, slipping in the library door. They were surprised to find fresh clothes laid out for them on the couches as well as there being a changing screen in the corner.

Once they freshened up, Haruka and Tokiya left the library and wandered around, trying to find the others.

They eventually found most of the kids and idols in the dining room. Tokiya braced himself before going in, but once they actually entered the room, the force of STARISH, Quartet Night, HEAVENS, and Ringo's glares nearly zapped all of his energy.

Just as he was about to defend himself, Taiki and Hayato burst into the dining room, panic clear on their faces.

"Tai-kun, Haya-chan," Ringo dithered, "what happened? What's wrong?"

Hayato was gasping for breath, so Taiki filled them in between pants. "Michi-nee...We looked...all over...She... She's missing!"

"WHAT!?"

 **A/N: Dun, dun, dun! So phase 1 of the plan has commenced, but where is Michiko? Sorry for those of you who don't like it being implied that Tomo and Haru kissed, but in my head, Tomo-chan must have teased the original guys like crazy at Saotome Academy, and kissing Haruka would have been a great way to drive them crazy with lust. So Tokiya and Haru got a little intense, but I promise this will be very relevant to the storyline I have decided to use. Next chapter will probably focus on Haru, Eiichi, and Ryuuya accepting the relationship as they face the kids' plan. I might also make that Camus's chapter since he was pretty reflective in this one. If you guys want to make suggestions for who should be the focus of each upcoming chapter, that would be helpful. Please, please, please! REVIEW! Reviews help keep this story alive. The more feedback I get, the more likely I am to continue the story and the more likely I'll be to update frequently.**


	5. Midnight Drive, Thawed Heart, and a Plot

**A/N: Thank you all so much for reviewing, faving, and following this story! I'm so thankful for your support thus far. The reviews especially make my day. I'm really happy to hear from some of you who read my first Utapri story, it's pretty nostalgic. Right, so someone was saying that it is difficult to remember whose kids are whose, so I have typed up the list to help you out. Sorry for the delay in updating, I had finals in three classes and then I went on a family trip. (I apologize in advance if Camus is a bit OOC, but I have a hard time writing him in intimate situations.)**

 **(In age order)**

 **Ichinose Michiko (17)- Tokiya/ Dad**

 **Hyuuga Kaname (16)- Ryuuya/ Pa**

 **Hijirikawa Masaru (15)- Masato/ Father**

 **Kurusu Sora (14)- Syo/ Papa**

 **Ittoki Kiku (13)- Otoya/ Daddy**

 **Ittoki Kanon (13)**

 **Kotobuki Yukio (12)- Reiji/ Oto-chan**

 **Cryszard Alice (11)- Camus/ Oto-sama**

 **Shinomiya Suzu (10)- Natsuki/ Père**

 **Aijima Hajime (9)- Cecil/ Baba**

 **Aijima Kagami (9)**

 **Jinguji Rena (8)- Ren/ Babbo**

 **Otori Akihiko (8)- Eiichi/ Poppy**

 **Tsukimiya Akina (7)- Ringo/ Da**

 **Ichinose Hayato (6)**

 **Kurosaki Taiki (5)- Ranmaru/ Pops**

 **Sumeragi Shizuka (4)- Kira/ Oto-san**

 **Mikaze Iori (3)- Ai/ Tou-san**

 **Kotobuki Chidori (2)**

 **Mikado Louis (1)- Nagi/ Tou-chan**

 **Just a discalimer that Utapri is not mine.**

...xxXXxx...

"Michi-nee...We looked...all over...She... She's missing!"

"WHAT!?"

 _ ****Late The Night Before****_

Michiko sighed again as she left Hayato's room. She was really inhumanly exhausted, and she was pretty sure her vocabulary was devolving into sighs of various lengths. Making her way back downstairs, she pulled out two bags from the hall closet at the base of the massive staircase. Once she had made her way back to the library, she flipped on the lights before dragging one of the tables closer to the French door. When she was sure the table couldn't be missed when coming in from the gardens or the beach, she unzipped one of the bags and laid out fresh clothes for Haruka and Tokiya. Unlike her younger siblings, she couldn't really think of the young adults as her parents, it was too weird for her given that most of them were barely older than she was.

She smiled at her mom and dad's choice of clothes. They had left the bag the night before, to make sure their younger selves would not have to wear day-old clothes covered in who knows what when they would come in the next morning.

Her mother had chosen a bolder dress than her younger counterpart would normally wear; the 'v' of the neckline plunged toward the the empire waist in a pool of red. The dress was cut in a grecian style that her mom knew would drive the other idols crazy. Michiko thought the vibrant color was quite fitting for Haruka, seeing as white would be ironic as of tonight.

Her dad had left a white button-down shirt and a pair of black slacks for Tokiya, and Michiko knew they would fit perfectly; her dad was just good like that. Once she had left the clothes and some toiletries laid out on the table, Michiko moved the changing screen from the back-room to the corner so Haruka and Tokiya could change there in the morning, if they wanted any privacy.

Once she was satisfied with her work, Michiko hefted the other bag, this one slightly bigger, over her shoulder as she headed out of the library. With a backward glance, she shut the lights and headed toward the grand kitchen. Once she was in the stainless steel and quartz room that Oto-chan and Babbo loved so much, she pulled up one of the barstools at the breakfast bar, placing her hands on the cool quartz countertop. The flash of cold from the counter as it contacted her warm palms jolted her awake a little. Michiko stretched for a moment and then grabbed her cell phone out of the duffle, sending out the go-ahead to her ride.

While she waited the fifteen minutes to hear the chime from her phone, she grabbed a large, chocolate-chip cookie from her oto-sama's stash of sweets. While nibbling on the cookie, she downed a glass of milk. Her habits got the better of her, so she ended up rinsing the cup and putting it in the dishwasher even though she knew the car was idling outside.

Michiko smiled, soon she could sleep for the night, and maybe even most of the next morning. She grinned, striding toward the front door with her lavender duffle bag slung over her shoulder.

She slipped out of the door silently, grateful that only the cat was out, not Oto-sama's dog. Alexander would surely be barking up a storm if he saw her sneaking out, but Kuppuruko just meowed at her with an annoyed look, his green eyes flashing before he went back to curling up in a fluffy, black ball.

Once outside, Michiko locked the front door with her penguin-shaped key. She skipped down the stone steps, tucking her rosy hair behind her ears as she approached the idling sports car just outside the front gate. The car was glowing silver in the moonlight, like a phantom in the night's sparse light.

Michiko slid out the front gates, hefting the bag on her shoulder again. When she got closer to the car, the driver hopped out, greeting her with a quick kiss before taking her bag and putting it in the backseat. The driver then opened the passenger door with a quirky smile. "After you, Milady."

Michiko swatted the older's shoulder playfully. "Knock it off, Natsume," she complained, but her eyes showed her amusement.

"You know," Natsume began, still smirking, "I was kinda hoping for another kiss, I mean, I did drive all the way to your house just to pick you up in the middle of the night."

"Yeah? I'm sure it must have been hard driving the fifteen minutes from your apartment to my house. And it's only because I can't get my license for another few months." Natsume pouted at Michiko's words until the pink-haired girl continued. "But... I will give you a thank-you kiss."

Michiko grabbed Natsume's face and pulled the taller girl down to her height. When she kissed her girlfriend, Michiko finally felt at ease for the first time that night. Natsume was familiar and easy to fall into rhythm with. She was soft and her scent and taste were seared into Michiko's mind from so many different, gentle, passionate, hot, and desperate kisses.

When they pulled away, Natsume was blushing like crazy, her cheeks matching her scarlet locks. All of her cockiness had been washed away by Michiko's gentle passion.

"All right," the older girl managed, clearing her throat. "Back to my place."

"Yep, until I get the all-clear from Kaname tomorrow, you'll get to have me all to yourself."

Natsume nodded as she swung back into the drivers seat. "It's a shame that we can't go out in public as ourselves; being idols makes things so hard. But, on the bright side, I found that nail-polish you loved and a bunch of great action movies."

"That's cool," Michiko murmured. "We could also get in some practice for the duet next month."

Natsume scoffed. "We've been practicing like crazy, Michi. We deserve a break; you deserve a break. Don't forget that I am practically part of your family, I know that things must have been hectic leading up to the time-travel thing tonight. Mom was saying that Aunt Haru wasn't even into most of your dads when she first got here, so the preparations must have taken a lot out of you."

"Mmm..." Michiko hummed. "How is Auntie Tomo, by the way?"

"Mom's fine. She and Dad are in New York again, so I have to go back to the house every so often to see how Subaru is doing by himself. Last time they were gone, he almost electrocuted himself in the bath by bringing his music player in with him."

Michiko snickered at the thought of the fifteen-year-old being scolded by her Aunt Tomochika. She could almost see his violet eyes conveying his embarrassment. After that, the two girls rode in silence for a few minutes.

"It must be nice to live alone," Michiko mumbled as they drove along the winding street and back toward her girlfriend's house. Natsume watched sadly as the light from the street lamps bounded off of her girlfriend's dull eyes.

"Well, it feels liberating at first, but sometimes it gets lonely," Natsume informed. "That's why you should move in with me once you win the Uta no Hime award at the end of the year."

Michiko blushed. "Stop making it sound like you're proposing," she complained, trying to hide her cheeks behind her hands. "And I think you mean _'if'_ I win."

Natsume gave her a quick peck on the cheek. "Nope, I mean when. You will win. You are the most talented singer I've ever met, and I know that the song you wrote is sure to win."

"Just keep your eyes on the road."

"As you wish," Natsume quipped, her azure eyes still twinkling like the constellations outside of the car.

 _ ****The Next Morning****_

Everyone was searching the manor for any trace of Michiko. Kaname and Masaru were sure to 'look for her' together so they wouldn't accidentally spill the fact that Michiko was perfectly fine and probably still sleeping at Natsume's apartment.

It was hard to lie outright to their parents, but Kaname told them that he had called her phone and found it where she left it on the counter yesterday (a decoy phone left by their mom).

Tokiya had then asked if it was possible that she was with a friend, and Kaname and Masaru had a hard time saying no when they saw how frantic their parents were.

The younger kids and the idols split into groups of four or five to search the different floors, the gardens, the garage, and the guest house. Haruka and the kids were worried about Tokiya who had been dragged off by Ren, Reiji, Ringo, and Cecil. If the aura of death was anything to go by, Hayato was worried about his chances of being born.

Haruka had gone off with Nagi, Kira, Ai, and Camus to search the third floor. It was also her first time getting to see her future bedroom. The room was spacious and cream-colored with dark, wood floors and a king sized bed with fresh sheets in a light blue color. Along the walls, there were pictures of the kids as babies and toddlers, little tykes, and some of them as teens.

On the bookshelf, Haruka found more pictures of Michiko and each of the other kids in books with their kanji written on the spine. Haruka traced her hand over the cover of the scrapbook that seemed to document the life of her oldest daughter. She skimmed her fingers along the page with the sonogram, over to the picture of a tiny newborn swaddled in a bright pink blanket. She flipped through pictures of each of the guys with the blue-eyed baby who had them wrapped around her chubby little finger. She looked at the photos as they progressed from the tiny, pink-haired baby to the smiley toddler, and from the proud kindergartener to the shy junior high girl.

She stared for a while at the one where Tokiya had the little princess up on his shoulders as they visited Disneyland Tokyo; the two of them flashed brilliant grins to the camera. Otoya had a little Kaname on his back off to the side while Ren and Camus held a tiny Masaru and a baby Sora. Her other favorite was one of herself and Michiko. In it, Michiko was maybe six or seven, and she and Haruka's older self were passed out on the couch together. Michiko was curled up on her chest, their matching hair pooled on the cushions.

When Haruka got to the pictures of Michiko in high school and at Saotome, she started to feel tears prickling at her eyes. She knew that Tokiya was Michiko's biological father, but she was starting to wonder if she would get to meet her little girl if this future did not happen. What would she do if she never got to meet any of these other kids who were all so brilliant and wonderful?

Kaname, she had figured out from his scrapbook, was a new idol with a promising acting career, and Masaru was already a world-renowned composer, and even the little kids were serious musicians as she had learned from the various photos of them in professional competitions.

When Haruka flipped to the next page of the scrapbook, she finally put something together. On several pages, she had seen a girl who looked deceptively like Tomochika hanging around Michiko, and at first Haruka had thought it was platonic like she and Tomochika, but the image let everything fall into place.

In the picture, Michiko was in a Saotome Academy uniform, beaming at the camera as the girl with the same fiery mane as Tomo-chan had her in a tight hug as her matching scarlet lips connected with Michiko's cherry cheeks. The decorative caption read: Michiko and Natsume on their six-month anniversary/ the day of Michiko's graduation audition.

Haruka blinked in surprise as she started crying. What was she going to do? What if Michiko had disappeared because she wasn't willing to give the other guys a chance. Michiko, she saw when she turned the page, was already an idol, well on her way to a career, and she had a girlfriend. What if Michiko and Natsume never met because of Haruka? What if her actions were putting this future in jeopardy?

Haruka could never deny her attraction to many of the idols she worked with, but her heart belonged to Tokiya. How would it be fair to any of them if she did not choose? But what would she do if Michiko had disappeared because of her? What if the others started disappearing too?

She thought of the older kids who were either already making their way in the world or making strides toward it. She thought of Akina who might never get to play dress up with her or Ringo. She thought of Taiki and his tsundere personality, so much like Ranmaru's. She thought of Chidori, running around and crawling on Nagi the night before. She thought of Louis, who was barely a year old. None of them would exist if not for her, but would they exist if she only chose their individual father? But then what would happen to the others. Could these kids only exist in this timeline, and if so, what was she supposed to do?

Haruka began to get really overwhelmed as she struggled to figure out what to do. Her head was spinning. Just as her vision started going black around the edges and her knees started to buckle, strong arms caught her in a gentle embrace.

When she looked up, she was surprised to find Camus staring down at her, concern clear in his crystalline eyes. "Are you alright?"

Haruka opened her mouth to respond, but nothing but a sob came out. She felt so guilty. She felt like Michiko's disappearance was her fault, and her emotions made it hard to speak. Camus seemed lost, he froze as she turned in his arms and buried her face against his chest.

Eventually, his arms wrapped around her, much warmer than she expected.

His voice was unusually patient as he rubbed her back gently. "What is making you cry?"

Haruka hiccuped as she tried to fight back her sobs. "What if it's all my fault? That Michiko disappeared... What if she's gone because I wasn't willing to give the rest of you a chance?"

Camus stayed silent for a minute, contemplating the best way to console the hurting girl. What was he supposed to say to the girl who had stolen his heart? As much as he wanted her, he could see no way this future was viable to him. There was no way his queen would allow him to become part of a harem, and Camus himself was barely sure he wanted to share her.

"It is not your fault, you are not the only one who doubts this future. Hyuga and Otori still have made no indication that they are willing to become part of a harem, no matter how much they may love you."

Haruka pulled back to look at the count directly. She looked frustrated and confused, even as the path of her tears was still drying. "They are the only other ones?"

Camus frowned as he realized that he had just cornered himself by saying that only those two had not consented. When he averted his gaze from the tiny composer, he had to fight the blush that struggled to color his porcelain cheeks.

Haruka would not let him get away with not answering though, so she grabbed his collar, surprising Camus like never before.

Then normally timid girl used his collar to pull the tall man down to her level. Her eyes were just as intense as they had been when she gave him the music for Saintly Territory, telling him that it would make him sincere. "Camus-senpai," she began, her tone even and confident, but still commanding, "please elaborate," she finished with smile that made him lose his composure.

Camus's heart stopped beating for a minute, and then took off again at the speed of light. When did she become so intense? Part of him wanted to scold her for her insolence, but a bigger part of him was incredibly taken with this other side of Haruka. Without thinking, he closed the gap between them, taking advantage of his stooped position.

His lips crashed against hers, cold as ice, seeking the heat of her soft lips. A small part of his mind worried when she did not kiss back, but the greater part just needed to release the frustration he felt from years of being nothing more than her upperclassman.

Haruka was surprised by his sudden force, but she could feel his emotions in his kiss. The things he might never say, flowing from his icy lips to hers. Eventually, she let go of his collar and slid her hands so they wrapped around his neck. She let her frustration slip away as his continued his assault on her already-bruised lips.

"Does that answer your question?" he asked when he pulled away. He searched her eyes for some hint of disgust or dislike, but when she stared back at him with the same intensity, he couldn't hold back his feelings anymore.

"What is this? After years of careful restraint, you have stripped me down to true feelings." He brushed her hair behind her ear so he could better stare into her warm eyes. "I know that I should not want you, should not want to devote myself to you, should not love you... but I just cannot stop myself. It is ridiculous how much I would willingly throw away just to be with you, even knowing that your heart belongs to another. I can see his marks on your neck, I can taste him on your lips, but it somehow does not matter. What spell do you have me under? Why is one heart not enough for you?"

Haruka blushed, looking to the floor as he reminded her of Tokiya's marks. Camus placed a hand under her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze the same way she had forced him earlier. He continued, his tone still as serious as ever, "I want to be more than just a senior to you, and I hope that one day you can see me as a man, not just a colleague. This is my sincere hope, Haruka," he concluded, kissing her hand reverently.

Haruka stared at him as he confessed, her eyes widening at the kiss. When he pulled back, Haruka was left standing by the window. She heard his retreating footsteps, and her heart raced. What was she thinking? This was crazy...

And yet, she rotated on her heels, the red dress flaring out as she called for him. "Camus! Wait!"

The count turned in the doorway, one blonde eyebrow arched ever so slightly. "Yes?"

"I don't know if what I feel for you could be called love yet, but I want to try! I won't give up on this future! And I can't let you walk away!"

"My, my. Isn't that a little greedy?" Camus asked with a bemused smirk. Even as he spoke, he walked back to where she stood.

Haruka became very flustered. "Uh- I...I didn't mean to make it sound like-"

He silenced her with a sudden kiss. "I know what you meant, and I accept if you want me."

Haruka suddenly panicked as she remembered something. "Ah! I need to tell Tokiya! It wouldn't be fair to start something without telling him."

"Haruka, Ichinose is a logical man. He knows what this future entails. We men are prepared for what it means to devote ourselves to you, please trust in us."

Haruka bit her lip, but nodded as Camus walked her back toward the bed. When her knees hit the edge, the two of them fell onto the downy mattress. Camus held himself above her with one arm as he bent his head down to kiss her again.

This time, she kissed back. Her lips were soft and warm, contrasting with his cool roughness. As they kissed, he ghosted his hands along her waist, letting them idle along her soft curves.

He slowly dragged his lips down the corner of her mouth, along her neck and clavicle to the crest of her cleavage. He pressed a few, heated kisses there before pulling back to watch the flushed beauty beneath him.

While he was above her, he pulled her further onto the bed until her head rested on the pillow by the headboard. He then knelt between her legs, pushing her skirt up until the base of her thigh was bare to him.

Haruka moaned softly as he pressed his lips to where he knew her femoral artery pumped blood below. He could feel her rapid pulse through his lips as he kissed and sucked on the creamy skin, turning it a bright red that he knew would bruise with time.

Once he was done with her left thigh, he came back up to kiss her lips and murmur sweet nothings in his native tongue. Just as he was about to move onto her other thigh, they were interrupted.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Nagi shouted as he barged into the room. His voice was pissed and his arms were crossed as he glared down at the couple. "You're supposed to be searching for Michiko, not making Alice prematurely!"

Camus pulled away to glare at the smaller idol while Haruka struggled to make herself decent. She became even more flustered when she realized that Nagi had seen her black lace underwear.

The younger idol struggled not to pin her to the bed himself, but he remembered everything Michiko had done for him yesterday, and his resolve strengthened. "I won't forgive you, or myself, if we don't find her."

With that said, Nagi pivoted and stormed out the door, giving Camus one last glare, almost challenging him.

...xxXXxx...

"So, Ichi, care to tell us what you did with the little lamb last night?" Ren leered as he and the other three idols trapped the blue-haired prince in the pavilion in the rose garden.

Tokiya growled. "It's none of your business! And shouldn't we be searching for Michiko, not bickering?"

"Ah," Reiji began, "but you got a move on, didn't you? That's not very nice, claiming her before we even got a chance to woo her."

"It's not just that; you deflowered our precious flower, our Haruka," Cecil agreed, his eyes stormy as he seethed in jealousy.

"Will you stop making it seem like she's a victim? What we did last night was consensual, and she is not nearly as passive as you three are making her sound."

"Nevertheless, Tokiya-kun," Ringo smiled deviously, "you still need to be punished."

Tokiya sighed in defeat, letting his shoulders slump. It would be useless to fight the four angry idols alone. When his collared shirt shifted, Ringo gasped, drawing the attention of the other three.

Ren whistled as he stared at Tokiya's neck and upper chest. "I never would have pegged the little lamb for such an intense lover."

"Haruka... bit you?" Cecil asked, dumbfounded.

Tokiya blushed, his cheeks turning crimson. "I told you she was not passive. She 'claimed' me every bit as much as I did her. There are probably scratches on my back too," he murmured, looking at them in annoyance.

While Ringo and Cecil tried to wrestle Tokiya's shirt off so they could get a better look at the love-wounds their princess had inflicted, Ren was salivating at the thought of bedding Haruka.

Reiji, on the other hand, was drawn over to the other garden when he heard frantic whispers.

He followed the voices over to the ivy gardens where Kaname and Masaru where talking to someone of the phone.

Reiji snuck around them, careful to remain silent as he tried to hear what they were saying.

"...Natsume-san, is she awake?" he heard Masaru whisper just ahead of him.

'Who is Natsume? And who is 'she'?' Reiji wondered.

The voice over the line was a little hard to hear from his hiding spot, but Reiji could tell that the voice was feminine, and her heard the name 'Michiko' distinctly. Reiji tensed, waiting to hear more before jumping to conclusions.

A minute later, he recognized Michiko's voice before Kaname took charge of the conversation. From his vantage point, Reiji could only see the older boy's spiky orange hair, but he could almost hear the eye-roll in the teen's voice as he filled his sister in.

"They are still looking for you. According Dad's journal, Mom should have given in by this point. I'll have to confirm it myself, but if things are on schedule, Poppy and Pa should be on board in time for dinner. Yeah, yeah. Ew, I don't wanna hear what you two did!" he and Masaru fake gagged when Michiko mentioned Natsume. When she was done, they two boys chorused, "Love you too," before Masaru hung up.

Once the two boys slumped down on the bench, Reiji stepped out and cleared his throat.

The teens jumped and turned so fast, Reiji thought they might get whiplash.

"So, Michiko is not missing, is she? Care to explain before I call everyone over here?"

Masaru blanched, but Kaname squared his shoulders, the apparent trademark move of the older kids.

"You're right; Michiko is fine. She's not missing at all, she's at her girlfriend's house."

"Her girlfriend? She's into girls?"

Kaname tensed, trying to gauge if Reiji was just curious or closed-minded. If things went poorly, he would defend his sister. "Yeah, she does. Is that a problem?"

Reiji chuckled, patting Kaname's shoulders. "No, not at all. Who she likes is her business, I just wouldn't have guessed. No need to fight me, Kiddo."

Kaname was displeased to have Reiji ruffle his hair, but he let it go.

"So," Reiji continued, "why is she at her girlfriend's, and why didn't you tell us that?"

Masaru burst in this time. "Mom, Poppy, and Pa, weren't ready to accept their places in this timeline, so they needed a nudge. Our younger siblings don't know either, they actually think she vanished."

Kaname nodded, his mismatched eyes closed in thought. "Dad left a journal that documents the events of your visit, and we know from our parents' older selves that they needed a nudge in the right direction. The emotion is there, but it needed to be brought to the surface. We think the best way to convince them to be honest with everyone is by scaring them into thinking that this future will fall apart without them."

"Isn't that a bit extreme?" Reiji asked, sweat-dropping at their dedication.

"It is, but it might be the only thing that can shatter Poppy and Pa's pride enough for them to be honest. Whether he shows it or not, I know that my father loves me already, and you've seen that Poppy loves Akihiko. If they think that we too, will disappear if they don't confess to Mom, then we can push them over the edge."

"Does anything they do really matter, or is everything already known? Is this timeline set in stone?"

Kaname and Masaru pondered Reiji's questions for a moment before the younger responded. "The way Tou-san explained it, the outcome of this timeline was inevitable from the moment you guys landed on the beach, but the way the events that lead to this moment happen, can still change."

"I see. Very well, I'll keep your secret then," Reiji said. The kids sighed in relief until Reiji continued, holding one finger up and wagging it at them. "But you guys are on cooking duty tonight, got it?"

Masaru nodded eagerly while Kaname just rolled his eyes again. "Whatever you say."

...xxXXxx...

Eiichi did not know why he got stuck searching with Ryuuya, Natsuki, and Syo. The only person he liked in his group was Akihiko who'd tagged along to help them get to the guest house.

He watched as his future son sauntered down the path leading to the guest house that was probably built to house all of their extended family. Even though this building was only two stories, it was sprawling and oozed opulence in a style that seemed to be a mix of his father's taste and Shining Saotome's.

The longer he spent in this timeline, the more sure he was that this future was planned by the two former superstars. Eiichi didn't want to give in. He didn't want to submit to his father again. Ever since he was born, he'd felt like his only purpose was to become his father's protégée, a furthering of his father's control in the showbiz industry. When he was younger, it didn't bother him as much, and he loved the adulation from the crowd, but he just did not want to give in to his father's next plan. He didn't want Akihiko to go through the same things he did as a child.

Eiichi was too far gone to be saved, but he could not allow himself to let his father control his son too. Every time Akihiko turned around, he could see his younger self in the boy's matching violet eyes. He could see himself being trained and broken in. Practicing vocal exercises for days. Playing his instruments until his fingers bled and his muscles locked up. Smiling for the camera at every event his father dragged him to even if he could barely move from the previous day's training. He could never let his father taint his children, but if that meant Akihiko would never be born, would it be worth it?

He stared at his son more as the small search party entered the guest house. His pink locks were just like hers. Just like the angel who he'd lusted after for years. In the beginning, it had only been teasing, only lust. To him, she had just been another girl to claim and then toss away, that's all he'd been allowed. His father had never allowed him to have a relationship, or to love, and he's never disobeyed, but she changed that.

Despite her delicate exterior, he'd seen her fighting spirit. He had seen it in her eyes when she had declared that STARISH would win the Utapri Award; he'd heard it in her music. He knew that she was far stronger than she let on, and her outburst last night had confirmed that to him. He could tell instinctively that she was more resilient than he was. He could sense it in her eyes and in the set of her narrow shoulders. She was a fighter deep down, and he got the feeling that she was unbreakable. He knew very little about Haruka's past, but he could tell that she had withstood something no one should have to, and rather than letting it consume her like he and the other idols had, she stood on top and kept her smile. That was probably what drew him to her. She never backed down, never resigned herself to anything. She conquered things head-on while wearing a kind smile, pretty heels, and an eye-catching dress. That's how he'd fallen for her.

Eiichi really hoped that Akihiko inherited her strength, and that his older self had prevented his father from influencing the kids. Eiichi knew that he would never forgive himself if it turned out that they were treated like pawns in a dynasty the same way he had been.

As they searched the guest house, he ignored the loud chattering and bickering between Syo and Natsuki, working in silence like Ryuuya while letting his thoughts consume him.

When Akihiko returned from searching one of the bedrooms, he went up to Eiichi and buried his face against his father's stomach. "I'm scared, Poppy. I'm really scared. What if Michiko ceased to exist?"

Eiichi felt his blood run cold as his son clutched his shirt. "What do you mean?"

"What if Nee-san ceased existing because Mom didn't accept all of you?" Akihiko looked scared, really, truly terrified. Eiichi felt his heart contract because it was the same look that he had seen in the mirror as a child under his father's control. "I don't want to lose my family. I don't want anything to happen to Rena or Hayato, or Taiki, or anyone else. And I don't want to die."

Syo and Natsuki had silenced as Akihiko talked, and even Ryuuya sat listening in the corner.

The oldest idol's thoughts drifted to his own son. If Akihiko was right, Kaname would be the next to disappear.

How could he let his pride ruin this future? He had been in love with the composer ever since she saved him from retirement the year before. She had given him his hope back when he thought he was getting too old for showbiz, and he was back to himself because of her. If not for Haruka, Ryuuya might be sitting in Saotome Academy, doing nothing but teaching, and while he likes helping newcomers, being an action star means everything to him.

Listening to Akihiko's fears, Ryuuya realized that maintaining his pride was not worth losing Haruka and losing this future. He just hoped he wasn't too late to save Michiko.

When Ryuuya stood and moved toward the door, he heard Syo calling out, "Hyuga-sensei, where are you going?"

Ryuuya turned to his former student, flashing a confident grin. "I'm going to get the girl."

 **A/N: Woo! Another chapter done! Thank you all for reading! I'm not sure by how much, but I feel like this story will be longer than my previous one. Oh well... Sorry if you guys don't like Michiko having a girlfriend, but it's just the way I envision her. I'm not positive of her sexuality (bi, pan, or lesbian), but Natsume is her forever partner at this point. (I even got so excited about them that I drew some art which I may post on my deviantart 'raine-diamond' along with sketches of the kids that I've done.)**

 **The next chapter will probably focus on Michiko/Natume, Haru/Eiichi/Ryuuya, and some family bonding, but I never really know until I start writing. Although I will say I really want to do something with a family bowling day.**

 **You guys know the drill. Please review and give me feedback on the chapter. Thank you to everyone who has already faved, followed, or reviewed this story, and I hope for your continued support! Until the next chapter, thank you!**


	6. Our Angel

**A/N: Thank you all so much for supporting this story. A special thanks to all of my wonderful reviewers. You guys are the sweetest, and reading your comments really motivates me to continue this story! I'm sorry for the delay, school started up full-time again, so I'm going to be busy these next few weeks, though I'll try to keep updating approximately every two weeks, or at least twice per month.**

 **Disclaimer: Utapri does not belong to me.**

...xxXXxx...

Michiko stretched and groaned as she opened her eyes to the bright morning light streaming in the bay window. She tried to roll over and ignore the light, but she rolled right into Natsume's chest.

She heard a snicker from above, and she slowly pulled her flushed face from her girlfriend's cleavage. "Like the view?" Natsume asked, barely containing her laughter when she saw her princess's blush.

"Ah, shut up," Michiko complained, swatting the older girl with a fluffy pink pillow. Natsume caught the pillow and used Michiko's grip on it to pull the pink-haired angel closer. She wrapped one arm around Michiko's waist, making sure her shirt rode up in the way that drove Michiko mad, before tilting her head and pressing her lips to the other's.

Michiko slowly released her pillow, choosing to grab Natsume's face as she pulled the older girl down, on top of her. Natsume shifted so she was straddling Michiko without putting weight on her, and she gently lowered them to the bed, using one arm to hold herself up even as Michiko struggled to pull her down.

Natsume bit down gently on Michiko's bottom lip, making the smaller girl whine softly. Michiko would not let Natsume stay on top, though, so she reached around the older girl's shoulders to trail her fingertips across Natsume's sensitive spot at the nape of her neck.

When Michiko tickled her, Natsume pulled away, startled, and Michiko used her sweetheart's shock to flip them over. Michiko grinned from her place straddling Natsume's stomach as the older girl gave her an unimpressed look. "You know that tickling is playing dirty," Natsume complained, crossing her arms over her sizable bust.

Michiko raised one eyebrow before leaning close to Natsume's ear. "Not as dirty as what I'm about to do," she whispered, nibbling on the lobe, earning a delicious moan from the redhead.

Michiko shimmied lower, just enough to clamp her lips down on Natsume's neck. Natsume whimpered, clutching Michiko's t-shirt as the girl's tongue traced the path along her carotid.

Just as Michiko was about to bite down, her cell phone started to ring.

Natsume bolted upright, but Michiko just wrapped her arms around her girlfriend. "No," she pouted.

"Michiko," Natsume sighed, running her fingers through the messy pink locks of the girl beside her, "you have to answer the phone. What if your brothers need to talk to you? You're acting like a child!"

Michiko suddenly looked more reserved and mature as Natsume snapped at her. "Do you really have to wonder why? Sometimes I want to be the child, and I'm not answering that; we were in the middle of something."

Natsume gave the smaller girl an apologetic glance as she shifted, but before she could apologize, the phone rang again. "Fine, then I'm getting it," the idol griped as she untangled herself from Michiko just in time to answer the phone.

Natsume made a big show of glaring at her personal koala while she answered cheerily, "Hello!"

"...Natsume-san, is she awake?" she heard Masaru whisper over the line.

Natsume glanced down at her girlfriend, giving her a pleading look. "Michiko is right here, just hold on a sec."

Michiko sat up and schooled her expression as she took the phone. "Hello? What's up? Are we on schedule?"

She heard Kaname answer this time, his grumpy tone easy to tell apart from Masaru's hesitant cadence. "Everyone is searching the grounds. Dad was dragged away by Baba, Babbo, Da, and Oto-chan, and Hayato seems worried about it. Also, Aki seemed edgy ever since breakfast,

but we can't do anything about that yet."

"Hmm," Michiko pondered. "Keep an eye on Akihiko. If he gets any worse, I want you to tell him that I'm okay. You know he is a hypochondriac. Make sure he doesn't panic. I don't care if it puts the plan at risk, we can't let one of our siblings get hurt."

"Understood," Kaname grunted. "They are still looking for you. According Dad's journal, Mom should have given in by this point. I'll have to confirm it myself, but if things are on schedule, Poppy and Pa should be on board in time for dinner."

"Is Haruka on the third floor with Camus? And is Otoya staying out of the family albums?" She asked, trying to maintain her composure as Natsume stripped as if she were going to put on fresh clothes, making sure Michiko could see her smirk. She vaguely heard Kaname reply with an affirmative.

As Michiko talked, her sparsely clad girlfriend sat on her lap and whispered dirty things in her ear.

"Ready for another round?" Natsume breathed, blowing in her ear, trying to make Michiko get flustered even though they hadn't done anything.

The reaction was instant. Michiko choked, and Kaname shouted, "Ew, I don't wanna hear what you two did!" He and Masaru fake gagged.

When she got her voice back, Michiko squeaked, "Love you, bye!"

Her two brothers chorused, "Love you too," before hanging up.

As soon as she was off the phone, Michiko glared at her girlfriend, annoyed by her antics. "No kisses for you," she announced, rising off of the bed and moving toward the tiny kitchen.

Natsume made a disappointed noise, and Michiko turned on her heel, crossing her arms and looking down at the older girl. Now she grinned. "Unless you can make it up to me, that is."

Natsume's disappointment quickly turned to sensuousness as she crawled to the edge of the bed on all fours and beckoned Michiko back. "I can do better than that, Kitten, just you wait," she whispered breathily, pulling Michiko back by the collar.

"I'm sure you can," Michiko agreed as she kissed the crown of the other girl's head.

...xxXXxx...

*Meanwhile in the present*

Haruka laid back on the chaise of Shining's vacation mansion, worrying over her children and the younger selves of her and her husbands.

She had known last night was coming, she could still remember when she had gone to the future and been swept on a whirlwind of adventure and courting, but she couldn't help worrying. What if something went wrong? What if the timeline failed to come to fruition?

Ryuuya made his way over to her, patting her head gently to get her attention. "You're worrying too much. They'll be fine, they're us, remember?"

Haruka sighed, her shoulders slumping. "I know. It's just my job to worry about the kids. And when I think back to our younger selves, we didn't know anything about parenting. And then all of the pain that they'll face as soon as they return to this time. I just wish they didn't have to go through it."

"True, but they have to go through it. If we hadn't, we would not be who we are. But it will be alright in the end, you know that. And I think you can take it easy on the worrying, Tokiya and Eiichi have it covered." Here, he gestured to the two bespectacled idols as they paced back and forth in front of the bay window.

Haruka gave her oldest husband a gentle smile, patting the chaise beside her. Ryuuya sat down on the edge of the plush red velvet, his joints creaking slightly, making his wife giggle. "I'm not as young as I used to be," he reminded with a small smile.

"Doesn't seem to stop you in bed," Syo began, his tone playful. He smirked at the action star from his place leaning against the burgundy wall. "I can hardly sleep on your nights because it's so loud."

Ryuuya rolled his eyes and retorted, "At least I don't scream."

Syo blushed, hiding his face. "Oi!- Th-that's not fair!"

Haruka started laughing as she ran her hands through Ryuuya's silver streaks. "Thank you two. I feel better now."

"Hmm, we'd better be sure," Reiji teased, popping up beside her. He nodded to Ryuuya who then pinned their princess's hands above her head.

"No, no!" Haruka shrieked as Reiji pushed her shirt up and blew raspberries on her stomach. "Haha, ha! Reiji! Stop! It tickles!"

Reiji gave her a side-glance, pausing for a moment to leer at her. "Not yet, My Girl. Not until I'm sure you've been cured of the sads." As soon as he said it, Reiji once more buried his face against her soft, ivory stomach.

Haruka squirmed, laughing so hard that she started crying. "Reiji," she gasped, trying to get air, "last warning. Stop now or.. ah..no fun.. haha.. later!"

Reiji pulled away instantly, pouting at the composer even as her chest heaved. He leaned toward her face, licking the tears away, and making her blush. "Now that's not a very nice threat. How about I give you some nice ones," he murmured into her ear.

Haruka pushed him away now that Ryuuya had released her hands. "It's not playtime now, Reiji. We need to find Saotome-san."

"Yes, the big bad father-in-law," Reiji teased.

Otoya interjected defensively, "I wouldn't say he's bad. He is the reason why we're all together."

"Relax, Otoyan, I'm only playing. I mean your dad no disrespect. Shining-san has been very helpful over the years."

Nagi stood off to the side, holding up his useless futuristic phone. "Man, how did we ever get by with the old tech from this time? Can you imagine Kiku and Kanon in this time?" He snorted, laughing. "They can hardly pull themselves away from their holo-games long enough to eat."

Haruka hummed in agreement, stroking Ryuuya's hair once more. "True, but you all are probably going to be miserable for the next two weeks. You use that holo-talk app all the time, and you can't play your brain teaser app since the server hasn't been invented yet."

A look of sudden shock took over Nagi's face when Haruka pointed out that his favorite game wouldn't work. After letting out a long and dramatic sigh, her youngest husband plopped down on her other side. "Hey, move it, Gramps," he jested, motioning for Ryuuya to scoot over so he could lay down too.

Ryuuya gave a look, but moved over anyway, though he pulled Haruka closer possessively.

Haruka wrapped one arm around each of them. "I love you," she whispered as she kissed Nagi's lips briefly.

He grinned, pulling her head back down and claiming her lips again. "I love you too. But don't worry. Our younger selves are in good hands. For all of Tokiya's faults, his genes are worth something since they gave us Michiko... and Hayato," he added as an afterthought. "Those kids are inhumanly smart and wise beyond their years. They'll be fine. I just don't envy her when they find out she was getting cozy with Natsume."

Haruka gave a sympathetic little laugh. "I was livid, but I understand why it was done now. If they didn't follow the plan, I probably would have never given the rest of you chance, and they really wouldn't have been born."

Ryuuya kissed the top of her rosy head. "But right about now is when Eiichi and I should be warming up to you, so don't worry too much. Right, Eiichi?" he asked the clearly distracted idol.

"Huh?" Eiichi grunted, stopping his pacing and looking annoyed to have been drawn from his thoughts.

"Pfft," Haruka snickered into her hand. She thought he was awfully adorable when he was lost in thought.

Eiichi glanced at his wife in confusion. "What did I do?"

"You were being cute again. You worry too much, Dear." Haruka rose from the chaise, taking the offered hand from Ryuuya. She strode over and kissed Tokiya's cheek to make him stop pacing, before she continued walking toward Eiichi.

"You know, a forty-three-year-old man should never be called cute," he complained in response to her teasing. When she stopped in front of him, Haruka wrapped her thin arms around him, patting his back in a way that was somewhere between patronizing and affectionate.

"You're sooo old," Nagi emphasized. "I'm only thirty-three! In some countries, I'm still too young to hold political positions."

"I think I'm about the right age to have teenage children," Eiichi tossed back, "without having been a teen dad like you."

Nagi glowered at his friend but said nothing. He just crossed his arms and rolled over so he was facing away from the rest of the group.

Haruka laughed. "Now now, play nice boys. Most of us were pretty young to be parents when we had Michiko, but I would never take that back."

Natsuki moved behind Haruka and rested his chin on her shoulder. "And then when we had Kaname we were slightly more prepared, but having a boy is quite different."

Tokiya shuddered, remembering the learning phase of having a son. "But luckily by the time we had Masaru and Sora, we had things figured out when it came to parenting."

"It helped that we outnumbered the kids for many years," Ren reminded. "Once Shizuka was born, we were evenly matched, but as soon as we got Iori, we were outmatched."

"You make it sound like a battlefield," Cecil pointed out. "The kids are a lot of work, but I couldn't imagine not having had a single one of them. They are all my precious children, even if a few of them were not planned."

That got a round of laughs. "A few?" Ranmaru asked incredulously. "More like everyone before the first twins as well as Hayato and Chidori."

"I wonder how they're doing," Haruka said wistfully.

Ren kissed her cheek. "You're right, Lady. I want to know how things are going, but at the same time, we need to use this time for what it is."

"And what is that?" Camus asked, crossing his arms as he leaned back against the wall. A small smile tugged at his lips as he understood what the saxophonist was hinting at.

"A vacation!" Natsuki and Ringo shouted, high-fiving.

...xxXXxx...

This was not the vacation Ryuuya had been promised when he'd flown the jet to Shining's resort, but he couldn't say it was a problem.

On his way back to the main house from the guest house, where Syo and Natsuki still stood with gaping mouths, he tried to compose his feelings for Haruka into a coherent declaration.

'I love you,' seemed too easy and didn't express everything he needed to convey. As he jogged back to the house, he silently prayed that Ringo was nowhere near Haruka, or else he'd never live down ruining his aloof reputation. Still, even if Ringo was with her, he would continue. She had saved him, and now it was time for him to express his gratitude.

His feelings for Haruka had begun last year when Shining had told Ryuuya to consider retirement from his acting career, if not from the idol industry.

He'd been a top action star for ten years by then, but he'd never considered retirement. It was unthinkable. Without being an action star, he wouldn't know what to do with his life. Ryuuya had never been big on singing, or other idol work, so Shining's suggestion had come like a blow to the gut.

He could still feel those words ringing in his ears. "You're an action star, your place can be filled by thousands of younger, able-bodied idols who are just as good. You're getting too old for your job."

Ryuuya had stood in shock, his blood freezing in his veins. The only sound that had been allowed to rise from his throat was a strangled noise that may or may not have resembled "Why?"

Shining had turned and grinned. "You've had your run, now it's time to step down. Don't worry, you can still work at the academy and appear on variety shows, but I think it is time you retire. Before you hurt yourself," the president had suggested smugly.

Ryuuya had spent the next few weeks in a bigger slump than he'd already been in. He'd had to do so many retakes that the director had gotten impatient and sent him home to collect himself.

After finally managing to give a passable performance for the movie, Ryuuya had cleared his schedule and refused to take work. Instead, he wallowed in his apartment, drinking to avoid thinking about what life would be like if he were not an idol.

Haruka had come in at the start of the third week, clearly surprised to find the bottles of alcohol all over his apartment. He had opened the door, bleary-eyed, hungover, and shirtless to find the little pink-haired composer standing there with a bag full of fresh groceries and a manila envelop.

She had bowed deeply and stuttered out an apology before Ryuuya had registered that she was there, and that she was staring at his chest.

After ducking back into his apartment, he'd grabbed a shirt, kicked most of the bottles and take-out containers out of the way, and let her in.

"Hyuga-sensei," she'd begun, "I came to make sure you are eating right, and also because Tsukimiya-sensei said you might be drinking. With your permission, I'd like to help you get back on your feet."

He'd given her a morose look from under his matted bedhead. "There's no need. I'm not getting back to acting. Shining himself told me it's time to retire."

That was when he'd first seen her fire. She had turned away from him, and he'd thought that she was going to leave, but instead she'd flung his blinds open, letting the mid-day sun blind him.

She had turned around to face him, backlit by the golden rays, but her matching eyes glowing with determination. "I'm not going to let you give up on what you love. You bring smiles to so many people's faces. Mine, Syo-kun's, and everyone else who watches your movies." She had set the groceries and the mysterious envelope on the counter before crossing her arms over her cotton-clad bust. "Unless you can tell me that you no longer want to act, no longer want to make people smile, I will not accept your retirement."

He had stared at her dumbly. Here was this girl, twelve years his junior and still too young to drink, talking to him bluntly. It was an awfully improper and spirited move, but he probably would not have listened otherwise.

He had stood there silently for a while, his fists clenching and unclenching until he finally whispered, "I love it."

"Hm?" she had asked, whether because she hadn't heard or she wanted him to do better, he still did not know.

"I love it. I love acting!" he had declared. "It's my favorite thing in the world. Ever since I became an idol, it has been my passion. I love making the viewers sit on the edge of their seats, I love seeing the fans, I love making them smile." Then he had finally dropped his gaze to the mosaic of alcohol bottles on the floor. "But what am I supposed to do? Shining thinks I should retire."

"Well, first, might I suggest cleaning up?" Haruka offered with a giggle, she gestured to the bottles and food containers that littered the room. "Why don't you start over there in the living room, and then I'll handle the kitchen and cook you a real meal. Tsukimiya-sensei assumed you had been eating nothing but takeout, and I see he was right."

It had felt weird taking orders from a former student, but he did as she asked. They had spent the next few hours tidying up his apartment before Haruka had presented him with a large plate of spicy curry (his favorite), and a massive glass of water, probably to make up for his alcohol consumption.

At the end of the meal, Haruka had passed him the manila envelope. "This," she had said, back to her milder self, "is a chance for you to prove yourself to Saotome-san. It's a dangerous, American action movie, and they want you in it. If you do well with this movie, the president said that he will concede to let you stay on as an action star in the agency."

Ryuuya had felt like crying. He was so grateful to her for saving him from his slump, that he had kissed the top of her head before she had gone back to the Master Course dorms.

So with a heart full of renewed hope from her, he had accepted the job and filmed his first American blockbuster movie. The five months he was away on location, his thoughts kept turning to the golden-eyed girl who had saved his career. Without her having been there to push him, he would have been just another washed up celebrity, never able to pursue his passion or make his fans smile again.

When he had returned to Japan, Haruka, Ringo, and STARISH had greeted him with a welcome home party, and that was when Shining had revealed that his threat of retirement had been purely to get Ryuuya back on his feet and striving for even higher goals.

He had been understandably pissed, but he understood Shining's plan in retrospect, though he tried not to wonder about what would have happened without Haruka having been there to save and inspire him.

When Ryuuya finally reached the door that lead in from the gardens, he was surprised to run into the composer. Or, rather she ran into him, bumping into his chest and stumbling back before he managed to catch her.

His thoughts froze, his heart suddenly racing in a way that he thought impossible. He managed to get his voice working, but instead of checking that she was okay, all he managed to ask was, "What are you doing?" He immediately regretted his curt tone when she struggled out of his arms, stuttering an apology.

Before she could get out another "I'm sorry," he held up a hand.

"No, I'm the one who should be apologizing. I was coming to find you," he told her gently, resisting the urge to pat her head affectionately.

She looked puzzled. "You were? Why? Did you find her?" Haruka's voice filled with hope, and Ryuuya was momentarily confused.

Her? Oh! That's right. She was probably still looking for Michiko. Ryuuya scolded himself for forgetting about the original task.

"No."

"Oh... well then, why?"

Ryuuya looked down at the tiny rosette. "I have something to tell you," he said, extending a hand to her.

Haruka gingerly took his offered hand, letting him lead her over to the white, wrought-iron bench underneath the sleeping cherry blossom tree.

He sighed, still holding her hand. "I haven't been entirely honest with you, Nanami. Can I call you Haru?"

She giggled at his hesitance. "Yes, that would be just fine."

"Haru, I need to come clean." He ran his hands through his spiky hair. "I think I'm in love with you."

Haruka stared at him, her amber eyes drilling into his soul. They seemed to urge him to continue, but his throat constricted until he felt a small squeeze on his hand.

Ryuuya turned his attention down to where their hands were joined. His lips twisted up in a slight smile. Everything would be alright.

"I don't _think_ I'm in love with you. I know it. Ever since you got me back on my feet, ever since you encouraged me to do that movie shoot last year, I've been thinking about you. You're on my mind all of the time, and even though I tried to tell myself that you were just a colleague, thoughts of you quickly overwhelmed my resistance."

Haruka gave him a gentle smile. "I'm not entirely sure about my feelings for you, Hyuga-san, but if you are willing to give this a try, then so am I."

Ryuuya laughed, ruffling her hair. "I want this. I want to get the ability to meet Michiko and Kaname, and the rest of the kids. I want you. And just Ryuuya will do as long as we're in private."

Haruka grinned, leaning closer, showing him that she wanted to be kissed. Ryuuya obliged, closing the gap between them swiftly. Her lips were as soft as he had imagined, and he hoped she didn't mind that his were slightly chapped. They kissed for a minute before pulling away, smiling still.

Once they had pulled apart, Haruka looked up at him innocently. "Well-then, Ryuuya, shall we go find Eiichi-san? I think this story might be incomplete without him."

Ryuuya's smile faltered. He had let his happiness about being with her block the fact that they had more pressing issues to deal with than getting alone time. "Right, if he doesn't agree to this, Michiko might never be born."

Haruka nodded solemnly. "I never imagined my life would turn out like this when I applied to Saotome Academy, but now I can't imagine life without any of you. And as odd as this future seemed at first, I want it. I want to meet these kids. I want to teach them, and learn from them. I want to watch them grow into the amazing people we've met."

"I know what you mean. I want to learn more about Kaname," Ryuuya said, squeezing Haruka's hand. "Like what he wants to do in life, his interests and hobbies, his favorite foods, and how he interacts with the little kids. Does he like sports, like I do? Does he sing like my brother? Does he get along with my parents? There is so much I want to know about him, and without you, and the others, those questions will never be answered."

"I'm sure Eiichi-san must feel the same way about Akihiko. I hated Eiichi-san for a long time. His arrogance and his personality."

Ryuuya snorted. "It sounds like you hate everything that makes him Eiichi."

Haruka's eyebrows descended into a look that was somewhere between a pout and an admonishment. "No. That's not it," she huffed. "He's not as bad as he seems. Over the last few years, I've run into him many times, and while he acts like that around most people, I've seen the real him."

"The real him?" Ryuuya echoed curiously.

Haruka nodded. "I saw him help a child star who had gotten lost at the station. When he saw the little boy crying, his face had changed. He looked like he's seen a ghost, but then he had marched over to the kid and put on the most sincere smile as he helped the boy find his manager. He was gentle and comforting, nothing like the side he shows us."

Ryuuya was surprised to hear that Eiichi had a kind side. That didn't sound anything like his reputation as Raging's legacy.

"That's not all," Haruka said. She smiled sadly. "I caught him crying once. I don't know why, exactly, but I think his father had something to do with it. I had heard yelling earlier. But when I saw Eiichi-san, he looked like a scared and broken child. I think he is not a bad person; I think he just needs someone to love him for his true self, not as a legacy."

The two of them whipped around when they heard a broken noise behind them. Sure enough, there was Eiichi, his violet eyes brimming with tears, his clenched fists shaking. "H-how could you know that," he asked, his voice quivering and thick with emotion.

To say Ryuuya was stunned was an understatement. He, like everyone else, had never thought to look more than surface-deep when it came to the notoriously sadistic prince of songs. However, Haruka hadn't let her dislike of him prevent her from looking deeper. She had kept track of these glimpses, and pieced them together to figure Eiichi out. She was brilliant, and almost terrifying. She had found a way through all of the microscopic chips in their armor, and she had stripped each and every one of them to their core. No wonder she was their center of gravity.

...xxXXxx...

When Hyuga Ryuuya had left the guest house to cheers or encouragement from the blonde giant, Eiichi had fallen to his knees.

Akihiko had immediately panicked, reaching out for him. "Poppy! Poppy, are you okay?"

Eiichi gave a morose chuckle. "I'm fine, Akihiko. I'm just confused, and I'm so sorry."

Akihiko furrowed his brow. "What are you sorry for?"

"It might be my fault too."

"What are you talking about?"

Eiichi sighed, pulling off his glasses and massaging his temples. "It might be my fault as well that Michiko is missing."

Akihiko shook his head vehemently. "No! You wouldn't!" his son shouted, covering his ears.

Eiichi frowned, leaning down to place his hands over Akihiko's.

The pink-haired boy looked up at him with panicked eyes, and Eiichi felt his heart stop. The look was the same one he used to see in the mirror after his father had hurt him. He had hurt Akihiko.

"Hey, hey, Akihiko, look at me," he soothed.

Slowly, wide violet eyes met their mirrored counterparts.

Eiichi took a deep breath. "Will you hear me out?"

Akihiko nodded slowly, lowering his hands.

"I wasn't sure about this future when I first got here. Your mother is the only woman I've ever been in love with, and even if she hated me, I thought it was okay because she felt strongly about me." Eiichi gave a wry grin when he saw his son's baffled expression. "Yeah, it sounds as crazy out loud as it does in my head, but that's what I thought. But then, I met you. I got to know you better last night and this morning, and I decided that I want this future. The only problem was sharing. I didn't want to share your mom, however, I love both of you too much to turn my back on this future."

Akihiko threw his arms around Eiichi's neck, almost knocking him over with the force of his hug. "I love you, Poppy."

"I love you too, Kiddo. That's why I'm going to go find your mother and set things right," Eiichi said, rubbing the eight-year-old's back.

"Go get her!" Akihiko encouraged, pulling away to beam at his future father.

Eiichi grinned, standing back up and jogging toward the door, giving his son one last thumbs up before he headed out to the gardens. From behind, Natsuki and Akihiko cheered him on, and Syo just made a disgruntled noise. Eiichi took it as the closest Syo would ever come to blessing his presence in the relationship, and his lips quirked up.

He jogged back toward the house, surprised to spot Ryuuya outdoors with their angel. He came to a halt when he heard his name on her lips.

"-Eiichi-san, he looked like a scared and broken child. I think he is not a bad person; I think he just needs someone to love him for his true self, not as a legacy."

Eiichi felt a wall of repressed emotion slam into him like a tidal wave. All of the air left his lungs, escaping his mouth in the form of a broken noise. He could feel hot tears brimming in his eyes, his brain struggling to stay in control, but his heart contracting with every shaky breath. Haruka and Ryuuya whipped around, their eyes darting from his glassy violet eyes to his shaking hands.

Eiichi swallowed, trying to find his voice, hating when it came out hoarse and pleading. "H-how could you know that?" he asked of her.

Haruka immediately ran toward him as his knees began to buckle. She grabbed him in a hug before they both fell to a kneeling position. Eiichi sank down further while she remained upright, hugging his head to her chest as he sobbed.

"Shh," she whispered. "I know you aren't really your stage persona, nor your Otori facade. I know that the real you is in there, and he is a wonderful man." She kissed the top of his head as he wrapped his arms around her waist. "It's okay Eiichi-san. Your father is not here, and I swear to you, I will protect you from him. I won't let him hurt you anymore. I promise you."

 **A/N: And...done! Whew. I had the WORST writer's block on this chapter for a while, and school started back full-time. I'm so, so sorry it took this long to write. I've had requests for Ren and Masa with Haru, so the next chapter will likely have more of them. Also, I will try to highlight more of the kids so you can better know the rest of them besides Michiko and Akihiko. Thank you all so much for your continued support of this fic. I love you all! Please review! Until next time, enjoy! ~Raine**


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